The Healing Touch (Stories from hope haven)

by Hanson

  The staff all breathed a sigh of relief when the feverish mother gave birth to a healthy, squalling, nine-pound boy. There were no complications, and the newborn and his mother were quickly spirited away to a room better designed to keep them isolated.

  The problem didn't end when they left, however. The delivery room had to be thoroughly cleaned, and everything the patient touched had to be sterilized before it was ready for a new patient—and they had two women waiting to use it.

  “This is only one possible case of the flu,” Riley said. “Imagine what it will be like if we actually have an epidemic. I don't know if the Birthing Unit could continue functioning.”

  Candace was just as worried as the nurse supervisor. They’d started asking all incoming patients whether they’d had the vaccine, but there always seemed to be a few who had either refused to have a shot or whose doctors hadn't recommended one. And now there was a shortage. The hospital served a large area, not just the town of Deerford, and today it felt like a leaky ship. The basic structure was sound, but the virus could still penetrate their defenses.

  Before she went to lunch, Candace scrubbed her hands for several minutes with a strong antibacterial soap. A nurse couldn't allow herself to become paranoid, but the flu scare was making everyone in the unit more conscious of the risk.

  Her hands still smelled like the chemicals in the soap when she went into the cafeteria for lunch. James and Anabelle were sitting together at a table near the rear of the room. She was going to spare them the smell clinging to her hands, but James waved her over after she put a serving of vegetable soup and corn bread on her tray.

  “Come join us,” he said when she approached.

  “We heard that you have a sick woman in the Birthing Unit,” Anabelle said.

  “Sadly, it's true,” Candace said as she sat down with them. “She's in isolation now. We can only pray that her son isn't infected. Of course, the tests aren't back. She may not have the flu.”

  “This is the second scare in your unit, isn't it?” Anabelle asked.

  “Afraid so, but the first one didn't prove to be the new strain of flu. We can only hope for negative tests on this one too.”

  “You’ll both be at the task force meeting this evening, won't you?” James asked.

  They both agreed that they would.

  “We’ll confirm the date for a drill,” he said.

  “We really need firm guidelines,” Candace said. “I’m sure we wasted time this morning getting permission to isolate our patient. It's really stressful when we’re not sure whether to let a patient give birth in the labor room. We also need stricter rules about who can be with the women in labor and who can visit after the baby is born. The evening supervisor had trouble with one family last week. Two older siblings wanted to see their new sister, but one had a bad runny nose and the other was coughing. The father was angry when his children weren't allowed to come in.”

  “He wouldn't be too happy if the newborn caught their cold,” Anabelle said.

  “Some people don't worry about germs and viruses,” James said. “They can't see them, so they choose to ignore their existence.”

  “You’ll have to excuse me,” Anabelle said, gathering the remains of her lunch as she stood. “I want to call Cameron before I go back to work. He's excited about cooking lessons. He was going to call this morning to see if enough people had signed up for the Happy Heart class.”

  “Cameron is going to take cooking lessons?” Candace asked.

  “I’m afraid we both are. He was quite impressed with the owner of the new shop, the Chef's Corner, but he insisted that I sign up with him. He thinks it will be fun, but he's still a little hesitant, afraid that he’ll be the only man in the class. Really, you’d think this was the 1950s. Anyway, it will be worth my time if he learns a healthier way to cook.”

  “Sounds like fun for both of you,” James said.

  “I hope so.” Anabelle gave them both a broad smile. “Now that I’ve met Sherry, the owner and teacher, maybe I should go along just to chaperone. She oozes southern charm.”

  James laughed, and Candace joined in. She didn't know a more devoted couple than the Scotts, unless it was James and Fern. A tiny part of her envied their marital harmony, but she loved them both and wanted nothing but the best for them.

  “I did want to ask you something,” Candace said as James finished a gelatin dessert. “Brooke is determined to have boys at her birthday party, but she’ll only be thirteen. I think she's too young. When did your boys start getting interested in girls?”

  James laughed. “My boys share a lot of things with me, but not always that. As far as dating, it hasn't really come up yet. Gideon may be waiting until he finds someone special. Nelson still seems more interested in Scouts and his church activities. But I imagine that can change any time.”

  “Brooke thinks her party will be a dud if she can't invite boys. I’ve said no more than once, but she doesn't give up. I’ve promised to give it some thought, but I still don't think it's a good idea.”

  “If you don't let her invite boys, she’ll think she's really missed something. If you do, maybe they won't come. Or maybe the party won't be as much fun as she expects. It's a hard decision. Remember, forbidden fruit always tastes the sweetest.”

  “Only you would say that,” she said with a soft giggle. She thought of Heath. What would he think about all this? They’d been so busy that there wasn't much time for them to spend alone or even have a coherent conversation. Plus, she wasn't sure she was ready for him to share in her parental decision making. For now, she’d stick with asking her trusted group of friends. “Do you think I should let her have boys?”

  “You’re the mother,” James reminded Candace. “If you strongly object, stick to your original decision, but be sure she knows your reason for saying no. I’ve found kids are more reasonable if they understand your point of view.”

  “I wish. I was looking at her baby pictures and remembering what a sweet baby she was. We don't get to keep our babies long, do we?”

  “No, but the teen years don't last forever either. If we do our job right, we’ll have adult children who do us proud.”

  “That's the catch—doing my job right.”

  “I’m sure you’ll make the right decision,” James said.

  Candace wasn't sure, but she realized that she hadn't even asked James how his family was doing.

  “How's Fern? Is she still doing as well as she was?”

  “Thankfully, yes, but she is sad about losing Sapphire.”

  “Then the pet detective wasn't able to find her?”

  “All I got from her was a crazy plan to knock on every door in town. Even if I had time, I would only annoy a lot of people. My immediate neighbors were a little offended that I would think they had our cat, so I gave up on that. And I really don't want the boys canvassing strangers. It makes their mother nervous, and they need the time for school and other activities.”

  “I’m sorry you haven't had any success.”

  “I offered to get Fern a new cat, but she isn't ready yet. She was pretty attached to Sapphire.”

  “Maybe the pet detective has some other ideas. You have no reason to believe Sapphire isn't alive.”

  “Maybe,” James said, “but all I can think about now are the plans for the hospital drill.”

  Elena smiled at the picture of four superhero nurses that Izzy had drawn for her. It was hanging on the fridge, held there by a daisy magnet, as she cleaned the kitchen after dinner. If hospital preparedness weren't so important, she would gladly stay home instead of going to the task force meeting.

  Rafael made the meeting seem especially important. He was the only one in the family who hadn't had the vaccine. If he did come down with the flu, she wanted him to have the best possible care. That might mean going to Hope Haven.

  When she got to the conference room, it was surprisingly crowded. Apparently the small notice in the news-paper had attracted quite a few people not a
ssociated with the hospital.

  She was the last member of the task force to arrive, but Candace had saved her a seat at the long conference table. So far, the members of the communications committee hadn't been asked to do much, but they had to be prepared in case of a real epidemic.

  “Thank you all for coming,” James said. “Our first order of business is to confirm the date for the hospital drill. Several of you have been working hard to get ready. If there's no objection, it will be held one week from today.”

  “That seems awfully soon,” Penny said from her seat directly to his left.

  “I agree,” James said, “but a drill is only valuable if it's held before an actual epidemic.”

  “Then you’re expecting the flu to hit Deerford in the near future?” a woman asked.

  Elena turned and recognized her as a reporter for the local paper.

  “No,” James said emphatically. “We have no reason to believe that, but as long as the possibility exists, Hope Haven should be prepared.”

  “I heard that you already have one case,” a man at the rear said. “Can you confirm that?”

  “We have a patient who was admitted with a relatively high fever, but the tests aren't back from the state lab. We’re hoping it's a false alarm, but meanwhile, she's in isolation.”

  “The worst thing the community can do,” Maxine spoke up, “is to react with panic to every report of sickness. People do get sick, but that doesn't mean they have the flu.”

  “Should everyone who gets sick come to the hospital to be checked out?” a gray-haired woman asked.

  “No, contact your own physician first if you have suspicious symptoms. Our Emergency Room can't possibly handle every case of the sniffles or sinus congestion,” Maxine said.

  “What about stomach flu?” the same woman asked.

  “Your own doctor should access your condition before you even consider coming to the hospital,” Dr. Hamilton said.

  “Is this the same flu that killed so many people?” a belligerent voice asked.

  “Where is that supposed to have taken place?” Maxine asked in a calm, professional voice.

  “I thought you knew that,” the man said. “Maybe Africa or Asia or one of those foreign places.”

  “Flu fatalities are pretty rare,” the county health nurse said. “But even seasonal flu can be devastating for people who are in poor health. We’re concerned with a special strain that has shown up over the winter, but fortunately most people recovered.”

  “But not all?” the gray-haired woman asked.

  “We’re getting off track,” Dr. Hamilton said, standing to lend his support to Maxine. “The point is, if we are unfortunate enough to have an epidemic, Hope Haven will be prepared to handle the emergency. But don't come to the hospital for reassurance. Call your family physician. They’ll be well informed and prepared to answer any questions you may have about your own health.”

  He sat down, and Elena was pleased to see that the combined authority of the doctor and the county health nurse had satisfied most of those with questions. James brought up several other points, emphasizing how much cooperation they were getting from other health facilities and community services. A number of retired doctors and nurses had agreed to help out, both during the drill and in a real emergency. The Red Cross was on alert, and local leaders would lend their expertise to the preparedness drill.

  Elena looked around at the other members of the task force, and Dr. Weller caught her eye. He winked, and she returned his little grin. It was great to have someone with experience helping out, but she was going to have to get used to doctors who didn't look any older than her son.

  Maxine assured everyone that the drill wouldn't interfere with any phase of patient care except optional surgery, which had already been rescheduled to facilitate the preparedness activities.

  Looking at her, Elena had a sudden flash of insight, but it faded before she could fully focus on it.

  “That went well, don't you think?” Candace asked.

  “Yes, very well,” she agreed, trying to remember why Maxine had suddenly reminded her of someone else.

  As soon as she’d hurried out of the hospital, Elena's mind went back to Cesar. He’d refused to talk about the class, not at breakfast and not during their hasty dinner. He made a point of questioning Rafael about the law enforcement class he was taking and joking with Izzy. She couldn't get him to tell her whether he planned to go next Sunday, but she had a strong suspicion that he wouldn’t.

  When she left for the task force meeting, he’d settled down to watch the penguin movie with Izzy while Rafael did some assigned reading for his class. Everything might seem normal at their house, but she knew Cesar. He was stewing, and nothing she could say would convince him that the class was about what it meant to follow Christ and not that family wasn't important.

  Chapter Seventeen

  AFTER THE MEETING CANDACE GOT HOME IN time to kiss her sleepy son good night and remind Brooke that it was nearly her bedtime. She was pleasantly surprised when her daughter meekly agreed to put aside the book she was reading and get ready for bed. Granted that this was sometimes a long process with lots of delays and excuses, but Brooke's change of attitude was more than welcome after a long, hard day at the hospital.

  Not only that, she actually was ready to turn out her light in less than fifteen minutes.

  “Mommy,” she called down the stairs, “will you come say good night to me?”

  Candace gladly obliged, remembering how much she used to enjoy reading a story to her daughter at bedtime. She found her snuggled under her quilt, looking younger and more vulnerable than she did during the day.

  “Mommy,” she said, “do you remember what you promised?”

  “Are you talking about your party?”

  “Yes, you said you’d think about letting me invite boys.”

  “I have been thinking,” Candace said carefully. “I just don't know if it's best for you.”

  “It would make me happy. Isn't that a good thing?”

  Candace sat beside her on the bed and remembered what James had said about giving children the reason for decisions.

  “Sometimes the thing that makes us happy at the moment proves to be a mistake later on.” Candace thought about what she’d just said and knew it wouldn't fly. Brooke didn't want to hear vague abstractions. If she couldn't invite boys, she needed to hear a concrete reason. Her mother's worries about growing up too fast wouldn't convince her to give up on the idea.

  “Why would it be a mistake?” Brooke sat up and pulled the quilt under her chin.

  “You’re too young to start dating.” Candace braced herself for an explosion but didn't relax when none came.

  “I don't want to start dating,” Brooke said in a confused voice. “That's not what this is about. Although…when I do start dating, wouldn't it be helpful if I knew more about how boys act? The only boy I really know is Howie, and he acts like a baby most of the time.”

  When had motherhood gotten so complicated? For a fleeting moment Candace wanted to talk to her own mother and tap into her wisdom, but Janet had made it clear that the party was her problem.

  “That's a good point,” Candace said. “Can I have a little more time to think about it?”

  “Okay,” she said. “Just remember, Mother,” Brooke said in a pleading voice, as if offering her closing argument, “if I don't have boys at my party, my friends will think I’m a baby.”

  “Your father always told you not to be one of the sheep. Do you remember that?”

  “No, and I don't know what it means.”

  “It means to think for yourself and do what's right, no matter what your friends do. Sheep will follow a leader without giving a thought to whether they should.”

  “What if the leader leads them over a cliff?”

  “That's the point,” Candace said. She said good night and went down to the kitchen where her mother was fixing a cup of tea.

  “It's hard to say
no to a little angel, isn't it?” her mother asked with a sympathetic grin.

  “She's been so sweet and cooperative, I feel mean not agreeing to have boys at the party. It would be easier to say yes and be done with it.”

  “It always is,” Janet said. “Now, would you like a cup of tea? The water is still hot.”

  Candace sipped tea and talked about her day at the hospital, but Janet was firm about not helping with the decision about the party.

  When bedtime came, Candace took her dilemma to the Lord in prayer, beseeching Him for the wisdom to do what was best for her daughter.

  Lying wide-eyed under the covers, she tried to come up with a solution. She desperately wished she had someone to help her think this through; once again, she realized she did.

  Her mind went again to Heath. He was a kind, understanding man who always took her seriously. He had gone out of his way to befriend both of her children. They loved it when he paid attention to them, and Howie frequently talked about playing games with him. Heath was an honest person too. So why would she be hesitant to let him in on her struggles? She decided she would talk with Heath about it after all. If he supported her decision, she would feel better about it. If he didn’t, she would respect that too.

  Yet…it would be easy to involve Heath in the decision, but would it be right? Her mind felt like the waves of the sea. Her children were so vulnerable since they’d lost their father. They were overly eager to attach themselves to a father figure, but was it in Brooke's best interests? If Candace changed her mind about the party, should she give credit to Heath? If Brooke saw him as a person who could intercede for her, what would her reaction be if things didn't work out? She didn't want her children to face another loss.

  She tossed and turned, torn between wanting the support of a man and afraid of the consequences. Above all, she didn't want her children's memories of their father to fade away. Howie was too young to remember him, but Brooke had been daddy's little girl. Candace didn't ever want to betray his memory by letting her daughter forget him.