A Personal Manifestation of A Romantic Ballad by Sir Elton John and Bernie Taupin
Posted: Monday, September 28, 2009
by Ken McCreless
RMS1437
Greetings Fellow Travelers ...
I left the hospital this morning at 0610. As usual, I began my daily ritual of missing my wife, Janie. Since I work out of town she and I spend a lot of time apart.
This was indeed a ritual, morning after morning after morning.
One such morning was a little different. A song came on the radio that caused my eyes to glisten up and my mind to replay scenes from my shift that brought to life the words that came through the speakers.
As I rolled along I thought of different times during different shifts when different parts of this song drifted into my mind. I guess you could call me sentimental.
"I guess that's why they call it the blues,
Time on my hands could be time spent with you."
Coffee break. No one else around. The silence gives voice to the sadness in my heart, whispering that I have one more night to work before I get to go home.
I hear the department door open, and I focus on appearing anything but sad. Sad faces draw inquiries, and I would not able to hide my feelings.
"I simply love you more than I love life itself"
A routine night. So far,at 0300, nothing too sad or extreme. However, an hour and 45 minutes later there would be a code blue- full cardiac and respiratory arrest.
At the bedside is a spouse, crying and pleading for her life partner to rest, that he had done enough. Despite my best efforts, tears escaped my soul and all I wanted to do was go home.
"Just stare into space
Picture my face in your hands
Live for each second without hesitation
And never forget I'm your man."
He looked about as old as a human can get, but he had no problem adjusting the blanket to her liking, or holding her straw just so. She was in a semi-sitting position and weakened from age and disease.
My heart and soul is making her way through school, in a field she loves- Cosmetology. She has already become proficient at eye lash extensions and has made some money doing so, enjoying every second.
I have done everything I can to encourage her.
There are so many more, enough to fill volumes. How can there be enough words to tell them all?
How did I get so blessed?
"I guess that's why they call it the blues."
1983 Big Pig Music
Lyrics courtesy of eltonjohnlyrics dot com
I left the hospital this morning at 0610. As usual, I began my daily ritual of missing my wife, Janie. Since I work out of town she and I spend a lot of time apart.
This was indeed a ritual, morning after morning after morning.
One such morning was a little different. A song came on the radio that caused my eyes to glisten up and my mind to replay scenes from my shift that brought to life the words that came through the speakers.
"I guess that's why they call it the blues,
Time on my hands could be time spent with you."
Coffee break. No one else around. The silence gives voice to the sadness in my heart, whispering that I have one more night to work before I get to go home.
I hear the department door open, and I focus on appearing anything but sad. Sad faces draw inquiries, and I would not able to hide my feelings.
"I simply love you more than I love life itself"
A routine night. So far,at 0300, nothing too sad or extreme. However, an hour and 45 minutes later there would be a code blue- full cardiac and respiratory arrest.
At the bedside is a spouse, crying and pleading for her life partner to rest, that he had done enough. Despite my best efforts, tears escaped my soul and all I wanted to do was go home.
"Just stare into space
Picture my face in your hands
Live for each second without hesitation
And never forget I'm your man."
He looked about as old as a human can get, but he had no problem adjusting the blanket to her liking, or holding her straw just so. She was in a semi-sitting position and weakened from age and disease.
My heart and soul is making her way through school, in a field she loves- Cosmetology. She has already become proficient at eye lash extensions and has made some money doing so, enjoying every second.
I have done everything I can to encourage her.
There are so many more, enough to fill volumes. How can there be enough words to tell them all?
How did I get so blessed?
"I guess that's why they call it the blues."
1983 Big Pig Music
Lyrics courtesy of eltonjohnlyrics dot com
Ken McCreless is just a guy who loves to write, and was born to do so. He is a freelance writer with several projects ongoing, including books and magazines. A huge fan of both irony and history, Ken has dedicated his life and his writing to serve the Lord Jesus Christ.
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More commentsBeautiful Ken. I'm sure your wife will be very touched when she reads this, as we all are. :)Thank you, Brianna.Yes, she cried and hugged the stuffings out of me.Awesome!!
hi ken,this was beautiful, and i hope, lethargic.as for mr. elston john-he is my favorite and i listen to him almost every day on my computer while i'm typing. i love his songs and music and bernie taupin's lyrics.i want to say again how in awe i am of a man who helps to save people's lives, and who can lend a hand to the bereaved.my mom used to sit with the cancer and aide patients during her breaks, and be with them as they expired, because they had no one, and most of their family had long left them alone. we only found this out at my mom's funeral when a woman told us her sister had been in that ward, and she witnessed my mother going in every day. meanwhile, my mother was being inundated with cancer herself. she was humble, and they wanted to know her name, and she always avoided it so that woman told us the patients on the ward starting referring to her as Mary.God has his special people, and those that work with life and death are gold to me. thank you,my best to you,sueThank you so much, Susan.I never would have asked for such a position in life, but, here I am. I'm not sure for how much longer, though.Thank you for reading, commenting, and for the support.
Thanks for sharing this emotional night at work. Music does soothe the most trying of times, and helps express the most heartfelt of emotions. Now I can't get the song out of my head.Kind of sticks with ya, right?Thank you, Michael.
I am still trying to figure out where in the Bible it talks about the gift of writing - He sure gave it to you and I am SO glad!! MarijoWhat a wonderful thing to say!Thank you, MariJo!
Thanks for sharing from your heart.Linda DThank you, Linda, for taking the time to read and respond. I really appreciate it.
Ken, THAT is poetry. I know good writing when I see it because there's so little of it. You, my man, are the master. And Bernie Taupin ain't bad either. Quite the master himself. Write on, brother! Write on!!!!Wow! Thank you, Sir Jeff.Mucho Appreciado!
Bro, my tears well up with yours. What a beautiful and heartbreaking revelation. Praying you guys will be together again soon. Hugs, Sis.Thank you, Sis- for everything!That's my prayer too. Soon (?)
Just as beautiful the second time around :-)Thank you, Sis!
Ken,I don't know how you do it? It must be that your writing is so necessary to keep you going -- to be able to place your tears in words. Beautifully written and the song is a treasure.Many thanksHi Nancy.It's a matter of "have-to." For me, there really is no validation or re-assuring aspect of this job. Death, blood, pain, relatives writing down everything you do or say, hoping to re-live their legal triumphs against the medical world- I could go on and on.I get more satisfaction taking out the trash.Writing? Now that's a different matter! Whether I write 2 words or 2000, I always feel re-energized and so alive.Anyway, thanks for reading and responding. I didn't mean to ramble.Ken,You can ramble anytime.
So sad, Ken. But life is full of 'sad songs'. Eventually, though, there will be many happy songs to outweigh the sad ones. Sometimes we have to sacrafice for a short while to make things better later on. Blessings to you and your wife. May you soon be together more closely and more often.Sandra.And the sacrifice will be worth it, just hard to tolerate "in the moment."Thank you so much, Sandra.
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