She always knew where to find them, and always what they needed. So many people whose lives were filled with pain, who felt such suffering day in and day out. She could help them, and she would – it was her calling, she was sure of it.

Let go from multiple hospitals, none wanted to admit that, though there was no evidence of medical or ethical malpractice, deaths on her shifts were constantly abnormally high, far beyond what could be explained with statistics. Once the medical board and insurance carriers started asking questions, it was time to let her go.

She studied nursing to help people, alleviate their pain, and make them comfortable. Of course she never liked being let go, often for “scheduling reasons” or “due to the budget,” but she knew the universe would continue spinning and she would find others to help, somewhere.

Walking back to her small studio apartment, she saw an ambulance drive away from a nearby alley, without lights or siren. “What happened?” she asked an onlooker, and was told a homeless man had drank himself to death.

“Mr. Gerald is finally at peace,” she smiled. She never liked seeing him cough and sputter as he tossed and turned beneath his blanket made of old newspapers. Her heart genuinely ached when she thought about him in the cold.

Dropping her keys on the nightstand, she remembered the receipt still in her pocket – a large bottle of grain alcohol purchased just around the corner, given to Mr. Gerald earlier that day to “ease his pain.”

She allowed herself a small smile for the man, now free from his earthly troubles, and prayed for his soul to find its way Home.

A prayer she had given hundreds of times before.


Spheres: Entropy, Life
Nature/Demeanor: Caregiver
Concept: Angel of Mercy