Monday was a super busy day at work, and I had a zillion things to do. I spoke to the patients, but I didn’t have a lot of time to chat. Until the afternoon, when I was walking past a patient and she waved me over.
“Got a minute?”
I didn’t really, but the furrowed brow, lips a downward slash, and the way she was shifting around in her seat told me I needed to make time. So, I grabbed a stool and pulled it up beside her. “What’s wrong?”
She went down her litany of complaints. I offered suggestions. She shrugged them off, then announced. “I’m old and I don’t feel good.”
Okay, then.
“You forgot to mention cranky.”
This made her chuckle. All she really wanted was someone to listen to her for a few minutes and take the time to let her know she mattered. That was worth fifteen minutes of my time, wasn’t it? Sometimes that’s all it takes to make someone’s whole day brighter.
A Little Bit Greener 
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