During the morning shift change, Thoko was brought to meet me and go over what was going on with me with the night nurse. After they were done, she said she would be back. A little while passed, and due to my condition, I was in a bad state emotionally. Thoko came into the room to give me my meds and get started with her day. I think she noticed I was in sort of bad shape, and with the sweetest voice ever, she simply asked me, "What had happened to me?" She said to make sure whatever you are holding inside to let it out. She turned to look down at me, and she held my hand like she knew it was going to be a wild ride of a story.

As I went through my story of cancer and sudden vertebrae fracture that resulted in losing feeling to my legs and the surgery, I had just had a week prior to fix my spine l, remove the cancer, fuse thebT-7 through T-12 vertebrae, and pins to lock it all together and now I'm working on regaining the use of my legs. I told her how I was feeling being a body that can't move and what it feels like when a nurse or assistant floor person closes the door to my room. It's like a jail cell of all walls. I can't move, I can't get up, I can't breathe because I'm crying so hard from what has happened to me. The whole time, she was holding my hand with both of hers, almost like she was taking in my energy and understanding what I was feeling. Never once did she comment or give an opinion of how I could have done something different. She just listened and let me get everything out.

Later that day I was back from another surgery, and she met me here in my room where she again held my had but this time, she told me her story. In 2017, she was in a car accident that caused her car to roll multiple times. She remembered being upside down and the smell of gas. After that, she blacked out again. When she woke for the second time, she was in the hospital but still had the smell of gas in her nose. Her family was there, and nurses and doctors ran into the room because she was awake. Turns out she was in a coma for three weeks. She sustained a back injury like mine that resulted in the loss of all her limbs. Neck down, she lost for a year. What she explained was that she felt word for word what I was feeling with my legs. She worked as hard as she could every day to regain the use of her limbs. All the things she felt, I felt. All the fears she had, I had. We had a connection that I didn't know could exist. We helped each other that day.

I truly and wholeheartedly believe that she and I, at some point in our lives, stepped on a path that ended in the two of us crossing paths and meeting. What she did for me is unimaginable. I told my wife what happened and what I experienced, and she, being a non-believer, was the one who told me that we were on a path that was meant to cross so we could get the healing we needed. Very true. I do believe Thoko is an angel. She unknowingly was sent on a path to meet me one day in the hospital and save me from myself. She allowed me to get my emotions out and showed me hers. Her story was so much worse than what I was going through, yet she never tried to one-up me or blow me off as not being that bad. She told me about feelings that she had from her condition that matched mine. We were connected. I thanked her with all my heart and told her of my appreciation for what she helped me through. She was the best.