Author: Janelle Williamson
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The Summer of Gnome
Gnomes “Do you see him up there?” She smiles and points up above the window. There sat a cute little gnome. She grabbed my hand and toured me around the house showing me the three others. “Aren’t they cute? They are my gnomes. They are so fun!” I asked, “Why are they so high up… Read more
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Why?
Psalm 38:14 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. I see you… As I peered through the glass that looked upon the young couple, my heart broke. She lay over her husband, weeping and stroking his face, unable to kiss his mouth because of the breathing tube, while alarms… Read more
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I Love You To The Moon and Back
The first time I was 7-years-old the first time I experienced death. That day remains vividly in my memory though I am sure that nearly 4 decades later, some of the details may be off. It was a Sunday morning in May, 1987. As I exited my bedroom, I noticed that Dad and Mary’s bedroom… Read more
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Ice Cream and 70s Rock!
To experience grief is to have had the chance to love another person. That is the most precious gift. The Cancer Center I’ve never actually sat in a cancer treatment room, “on the other side.” Sure, I’ve seen many patients during their treatment but I have never sat there and listened to what was going… Read more
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17 years…
Wedding toasts Ever since he died, I have been unable to endure the Father of the Bride toast at weddings. He was unable to do such a toast at my wedding because he was just too sick. Last weekend I attended a beautiful wedding of a colleague. When her father stood up to deliver the… Read more
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The Lake
Success How is success measured? Money? Fame? The size of your house? A recognizable name? Or is it measured by the way we care for others? I have always considered my Uncle Doug to be a successful man by all of the standard measures. Retiring early from a successful engineering career, he began a consulting… Read more
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Miracles at the intersection of faith and science
Who can list the glorious miracles of the Lord? Psalm 106: 2 I am a Christian. And as a Christian who stands on the word, I believe in miracles. I am a nurse practitioner, a scientist who understands the pathophysiology of the life cycle. In my daily work I refer to protocols, data and statistics,… Read more
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The Gift of Life
The Very First Time Though it was decades ago, I can still recall like it was yesterday. The first time I cared for an organ donor. A brand-new ICU nurse, I was just a few years older than my patient. They lay in the bed, body perfectly intact and healthy, brain obliterated by a high… Read more
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The Long Goodbye…
Alice My first encounter with dementia occurred when I was just a girl. I remember going to visit my grandmother when I was about 13 years old. Laying in a bed in the fetal position, she was nothing more than skin and bones. Unable to speak or sit up. She lived in this state for… Read more
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Someone needs you…
A wise man’s heart guides his mouth, and his lips promote instruction. Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. Proverbs 16:23-24 Someone needs you. Someone needs you. Someone needs you. Over and over these words flooded my mind from the moment I opened my eyes that morning. I… Read more