The crane angel
My son was 3 years old when he was diagnosed with ALL T-Cell Leukemia 6 years ago. He was hospitalized for much of his treatment and as you can imagine, keeping a 3 year old entertained in a hospital room can be a challenge. He was seriously into trucks and tractors at the time, wearing his construction hat and yellow boots every day, even during treatment. Conveniently, there was some construction going on at the hospital that involved a huge crane. To alleviate my son’s boredom, I would wheel him down the hall (still attached to his IV pump) to the big window where we could watch the construction work.
It was one of the crane operators that really made a difference for my son. It started as a wave and a smile; then a thumbs-up, and eventually he would bring him various union stickers to put on his construction helmet just like the “real” workers do. I can’t tell you the difference this made to my son. He looked forward to these visits and this made the hospital visits so much more tolerable for him (and probably for my husband and myself).
I don’t know this stranger’s name, I don’t know if I would know him if he passed me on the street or if I will ever see him again. But I will always remember how good it felt to have someone show this simple act of kindness to my son and I, helping to turn a difficult situation into something with wonderful memories.