"Nothing Lasts but God's Love" (Ash Wednesday)

-Rushed to the clinic to get signatures from the psychiatrist on call.

-Rushed to the new ER and prepared paperwork for hospitalizing a 14 year old child with powerful psychotic symptoms, had her mom sign all three forms and ran downstairs to request the ambulance.

-Realized it's Ash Wednesday and chased down the hospital chaplain. Spotted Father in the hallway and got that ashen cross painted on my forehead, and -as he said stuff about dust and ashes and the fact that nothing lasts but God's love- slowed down for the first time this day.

-Rushed to the monthly supervisors' meeting and realized as I was wiping my sweat, I wiped Father's ashes right into my handkerchief, and thought of what he had said about nothing lasting but God's love.

-Got paged by my student who had just finished an intake and needed my presence in the clinic.

-Checked with the ER and realized the ambulance requested never arrived.

-Called around and realized that the people responsible for calling the ambulance had "gone to a staff meeting and forgotten all about it".

-Apologized to the hospital staff at receiving hospital who were as livid as I was, and did my best to rectify the situation.

-As I was eating lunch I learned that the ambulance had finally arrived at the ER and taken kid and mom.

-Got paged by my student again as she needed my presence in the clinic ...

.... Well, now I am having a beer, listening to an old old German hit, "Tulpen aus Amsterdam" ... I listened to that one first when I was 6 or 7. Quietly letting the day bleed away, I remember the few words Father said, "Nothing lasts, except for God's love".

(Written Ash Wednesday, 2013)