Healing the Hurt in Others

--by smilingsusan, posted Mar 4, 2009

Five-and-a-half years ago my father was suddenly rushed to the hospital for open heart surgery. At the time, we had no idea that he was gravely ill. The surgery did not go well and he remained unconscious. Due to the laws of our state, we were forced to keep him on a ventilator for 72 hours against his living will wishes.

At the end of day two, I was sitting in the waiting room and was watching others walk their fathers around who had had similiar surgeries. Typically, I am very happy for others that are recovering, but this evening, I guess I was a little angry because I finally realized I would never be able to hold my father's hand and walk down the hall again.

I had to jump up and run down the hall to get away from everyone. This is not in my nature but I just had to be alone. After running for what seemed like eternity, I found a restroom and went in. I sat in a stall and cried for at least five minutes.

When I came out of the stall there was a stranger by the sink. I went to turn on the water to wash my face a little and she just grabbed me and hugged me. She held onto me until I finally stopped crying. Then she grabbed a paper towel, wet it and handed it to me. She looked at me and smiled and then left. She never spoke one word but she touched my heart forever.

She taught me that you do not need to be an eloquent conversationalist to help heal the hurt in others. Never hesitate to hug someone who may need it today. You can make a difference in someone's life without ever muttering one word.

6233 Reads

Posted by smilingsusan
Mar 4, 2009
Comments (24)

Readers Comments

lovebug wrote: Good to meet you, I. myself am a hugger. I do not know why. I think it is my nature. I do thank God for that.

makesomeonesmile wrote: What a great story, thanks for sharing! A hug can often say more than words could ever say!

JuneBug wrote: Hugs to you! What an emotional post! Thank you! :)

joyful wrote: This is a wonderful post, a true random act of kindness and love. Thank you for sharing such a personal moment, :-)

cabbage wrote: Thanks for sharing that--I too am a hugger, but sometimes don't know when it's ok to do that for a stranger--thanks for letting me know I can go with my feelings.

wayfarer wrote: Ow, wow! Just wonderful!

butterfly wrote: thats so lovely. thank u for sharing your special moment of kindness from a stranger. may u be blessed always. love and light xx

lmil1954 wrote: Susan thank you for this post. YOU may never know what impact IT may have on your readers! God bless you-Linda:)

AURELIA wrote: I too am a hugger to those I know. Thank you for letting me know that if I open my arms to a stranger, I just might pass along a Healing HUG to a them too. I am sorry for your loss. Love, Aurelia

NIRMAL wrote: Its raelly nice one. It is easy to understand but difficult to implement. Most of time we are not taking more interest in others problem.

Stories of Kindness from Around the World