Saturday morning was emotional, as I couldn’t be with my husband and his mom. My husband was there, though, right at his mother’s side. I received several frantic texts about how much pain she was in and that he and our teenage son were becoming very emotional. Suddenly, I received a text that calmed my mind. It read exactly, “Her nurse is absolutely amazing.” Can I say that for a nurse to impress my husband, it takes a lot? It takes time, effort, patience, and a caring heart. He has always been an excellent judge of character, and he wasn’t wrong. I arrived home late from work, but my husband couldn’t stop talking about Nurse Tenisha and how relieved he was that she would be back the following morning. I asked him what impressed him and he couldn’t describe it, he said, and I quote his exact words- “she just has a heart for it. This is an ortho unit and she’s on hospice so it’s not her ‘thing’ and she just has it in her, it takes a special person and she is one of them. I don't know specifics. She called her sweet pea, and her bedside manner was amazing. Just overly nice.”
Tenisha continuously asked if we had questions or needed anything and addressed every concern we had very quickly. Hospitals are busy places, but this beautiful soul acted as though she had no other patients and nothing but time for our family. As the end of the shift approached, she shared stories of her family, we discussed emotional teenagers and plans for our kids’ futures, and we just got to talk a bit. I shared photos of my mother-in-law in her younger years, and Tenisha adored them. She wished us a peaceful Christmas, letting us know she would be back on Wednesday. 
Every caregiver after that was kind, caring, and attentive to our needs. But as my husband said time and again, “They are good, but they aren’t Tenisha.” As Nurse Tenisha was wrapping up her shift, she made time to be with us, to hug us, and to make the appropriate calls. Her care from the first moment was genuine, holistic, and family-centered. Her level of nursing skills are truly advanced and well-rounded. Her interprofessional communication is stellar. Her heart is made of gold and glitter. It is for all of these reasons we believe Nurse Tenisha deserves a lifetime of happiness and blessings.