Precious Life

Before starting my mission, I had little experience with death and wondered how I would approach people who were essentially “on their death bed.” I was also concerned about what my coworkers would be like and how we would get along. Thank God it turned out that all the staff at Cabrini Hospice are genuinely caring for the patients and willing to work with me. My fellow volunteers have also been a tremendous help, showing me the ropes and giving me the opportunity to see how they approach the patients.

I try to reach out to every patient who comes to the unit, but there are some I have grown closer to in friendship. One such patient was Graciela, a middle-aged woman suffering from brain cancer.

I first met her when I responded to a cry of pain. I assured her the nurses would control her physical pain. She did not want me to leave and tried to stall me by requesting things I could do for her. I began to realize Graciela’s pain was more than physical; she was frightened.

I began to learn about her life, family, and hobbies. One day, Graciela was listening to Marvin Gaye on the radio. She loved music and used to be a professional dancer. On her last day before going home, we were discussing music. I told her that I liked jazz, Miles Davis in particular. I had my IPOD MP3 player with me. We shared the headphones while listening to Davis’ Autumn Leaves. Graciela imagined she was dancing.

Before she went home, she said we needed to hang out sometime and listen to her records. I told her that would be fun, but knew it would probably never happen. A week later, Graciela returned to the unit. Her condition had worsened and she was not responding. I went to her, held her hand, told her I was glad to see her again. Her eyes moved in response. Later that night, she passed away.

I am grateful for the opportunity to be with Graciela in her final days. And I am grateful to have been given the opportunity to be with people during a life stage that many look away from.