Wednesday, March 18, 2009

this is why I hate being a nurse


I love Liam Neeson.


The voice, the face, the accent, the intelligence, the whole package. Love him, love him, love him.


And I have watched from afar as this man I adore has made a life for himself with a woman he is obviously captivated with. A woman at least his equal - and maybe more. So today when I fired up my computer and saw that Natasha Richardson had been "critically injured" in a skiing accident, it got my attention. I like celebrity gossip as much as the next person, but it always feels like it's from a distance. This one felt a little too real.


A lot of my romantic fantasies come from Hollywood, as my love of Chick Flicks should prove. But it was a line from Neeson that I will always remember. Talking about Richardson, he said that she touched places in his soul he didn't even know existed, hit buttons he didn't even know he had. And even though I was appalled that anyone would choose to be married the day of the Wimbledon Finals, I've always followed their marriage closely. I know Hollywood is all about illusion, but these two sure do seem to be the real deal.


So tonight I'm following this story as it unfolds on the internet and my heart is doing a really slow and painful contraction. My own personal experience isn't helping much, since I have lots of mental pictures of people in the same situation stuck in my head. Working in a Trauma ICU will do that to you. I've seen firsthand so many times how things can change just like that - and it's terrifying. You never get over that randomness. Never. From the details coming out it sure sounds like a bleed - which can resolve itself easily or be absolutely catastrophic. It's all luck of the draw.


I don't often find myself in a position where I do my own version of praying for someone I don't even know. But tonight I think I just might.

13 comments:

Wisewebwoman said...

Me. Too. They are truly special people.
XO
WWW

Rudee said...

Me three.

Maggie May said...

It is a terrible thing and I hope she pulls through without brain damage.

Pam said...

i saw this day before and was shocked. i love natasha..remember her in the parent trap? my girls loved that movie. i love liam neeson...always have. he's the darkman. i'm hoping this is one of those things that resolves itself. xx

Cath said...

And this is why I love that you ARE a nurse.

You care.

And that means your patients get the best possible. The best.

That's you, friend.

Eddie Bluelights said...

As an ambulance man I totally inderstand how you feel for people in their suffering and illnesses. I sometimes wish I had the gift of healing. We get very attached to them, don't we.

Irene said...

I like Liam Neeson very much, but I feel no special connection to him or his wife. Nevertheless, she is a human being who got hurt in an accident, so I wish her all the best and a full recovery, because Liam Neeson loves her, but because she is also a fellow human being. Recently, a young friend of my family died skiing when she hit a tree. She was 17 years old.

Akelamalu said...

I'm praying for her too. :(

Devon said...

I take tons of coumadin daily. My family wants to go skiing Sunday, I think I just found my excuse to opt out!

Rositta said...

In my youth when I lived in Montreal I skied that mountain many times. That was our favourite weekend retreat. I had lots of falls too when I was learning and in those days helmets weren't even on the radar. I was so saddened to hear that she died from such a seemingly small uneventful fall. I wonder though if there might have been some pre existing condition. Very sad...ciao

laurie said...

i think this is what recently killed garrison keillor's older brother, too. he died last week after falling while ice skating. he lived 12 days, mostly in a coma. very very sad.

That Janie Girl said...

I'll be praying for her, too!

Daryl said...

Here in NYC we all sort of knew things wouldnt turn out well or she'd NOT have been taken to Lenox Hill Hospital which is a fine hospital but not known for dealing with serious head trauma .. so sad