Nurse Jen Cassidy became a permanent part of my life and memories on day 4 of a 12 day hospital stay. I had been in isolation battling sepsis, covid, pneumonia, parainfluenza, and a collapsed lung. Never have I been so sick. The night before Jen appeared it was difficult. The severity of my situation hit home after days of denial. The very real possibility that I had celebrated my final birthday at age sixty was difficult to accept but accept it I did. My family had already visited, and my spouse, C, who fights MS with everything she has could not visit but stayed in constant text and phone contact. But I was alone in a hospital bed, chest tubes placed, IVs flowing, urinal next to my food tray, and unable to move more than a few inches without blinding pain. Jen introduced herself, moved the urinal away from my food with no comment, looked at me, and told me she would take care of me. She may have seen a grey-skinned and haired sick older man in that bed but acted as if I was far more than that. She listened as I rambled on about this and that, looked at pictures of my grandchildren and pets as she worked, and made me feel like a person of dignity with a story to tell and many more years of life to live. Her skill at establishing an IV in tired and abused veins was remarkable and painless, and it lasted three more days. Medications were administered and I never questioned what was being forced into my body, so confident was I that Jen had things fully under control. My optimism had been restored by a traveling nurse who saw me as more than just another patient. I sat up in my bed when she stepped into my room, did my best to look presentable, and tried my hardest to be amusing and strong, even though I wanted nothing more than to allow the rising depression have a chance to take over, give up and let fate have its way with me. But that would have been easy and Jen Cassidy would have been disappointed and I just couldn’t let that happen. I got better, survived my surgery, recovered, and went home to my family. Jen provided a spark when I needed it most, and for that, I will be forever grateful.