"...the awakening process is an act of grace...There isn't a tidy sequence of logical steps that leads toward it." -Eckhart Tolle
We, especially those of us that work in structured organizations, love a set of steps to follow. Love, the most important thing in life, is not learned with such a "tidy sequence."
Stories are the best teachers. The stories we honor determine our values and guide our lives. Stories don't give us easy answers. Instead, they point the way to our truest answer.
What does Radical Loving Care look like?
Once upon a time, I sat with a group of housekeepers in a hospital cafeteria. One of them told me she had been mopping the floor outside a patient's room the previous night.
"This old man was calling out for his daughter," she said. "I knew his daughter had left an hour ago. He was confused. The nurses were busy. I put down my mop, walked into the room, and took the old man's hand. In a couple minutes, he fell off to sleep. I went out, picked up my mop, and went back to work."
What is "radical" about this housekeeper's actions? Those of us that work in healthcare organizations recognize this story on several levels: The housekeeper broke from her regular responsibilities. In military terms, she "abandoned her post."
In many settings, a supervisor would discipline her. In a healing organization, this story is shared by leaders to signal that this story defines Radical Loving Care.
The housekeeper gave the patient what he needed. He didn't need a pill or a shot or a medical procedure. He needed a loving hand.
She stood with him while she was needed and only left when that need had been met.
When the patient's need was met, she returned to another place she was needed - her regular work.
Some think of the Parable of the Good Samaritan as a fable from another time and, perhaps, another religion from theirs. The story of the housekeeper and the old man is a significant expression of the great Parable.
Those with a Servant's Heart put aside their immediate wants for the deeper needs of others. They help others no matter what.
-Erie Chapman
