LENT: Poetic Reflections on Indescribable Moments

 So much of what we do as chaplains cannot be quantified.  We do our best to put into words the moments we share with patients and their families.  After each visit, we enter a chart note into the medical record, using clinical language to describe emotional and spiritual encounters.  Each week, we produce written reflections that our educator and peers read.  And each month, we detail one specific visit in a Verbatim, in order to revisit what was said, what could have been said or done better, and what we learned about our functioning as a chaplain.  During LENT, I will be attempting to capture my hospital experiences through poetry, which points to the sacredness of more inarticulable feelings.  May the Mystery be expressed and experienced through the smattering of sentences that I will attempt to share in the days to come.  Amen.