A Rainbow Of Blood Vials
Yesterday I got some blood taken at the hospital in White Rock.
The technician took a quick glance at the inside of my elbow and put her finger on the tiniest vein, then effortlessly and painlessly filled the vials. Blood star!
It looked like a pretty blood vial colored stage lit rainbow showing up in the basket when she was done.
I asked her if she knew how gooooood she was at her job.
Her stone face softened as she said: “nobody cares.”
“I do!” I said.
Little grin.
I tell her how I was pin cushioned five times once by an anesthesiologist, the most highly paid expert in the hospital, $300K a year, and he can’t locate my vein. She liked that one.
Smiling now.
Then I describe the scene where the iv was inserted in the back of my hand as I headed into the operating room for abdominal surgery once, which put a hole in my vein and blew up my hand like a balloon, and the swelling hurt so much I forgot to worry about going into surgery.
Giggling now.
A dialogue starts, she claims the spotlight.
The blood star’s face is glowing, as she talks about her teachers in her high school in the city she’s from.
She steps out of the role of paid actor, she’s animated and coming to life.
It was Friday afternoon, the end of her week, and whether she owns the role or doesn’t pass the audition the pay scale is the same. The only difference is in how the audience reacts.
They line up for up to an hour to see her. They hold their numbers they take out of the machines like tickets, and wait for their seat to be ready. They are tired, and their parking meters expiring, and they fasted for 9 hours, and sometimes they faint after the performance. She’s prepared for anything in the live show. The show must go on. Multiple shows a day.
There’s no intermission.
I am glad she gave it her best, because I know what a bad performance feels like.
I appreciate greatness in any field of endeavor. Because it’s mindfulness.
I hope she felt my applause. It can’t be easy facing that tough crowd everyday.
And turning in thousands of quality performances.
Even when extracting blood all day long in the healthcare theater, or maybe especially that she is. She knows her part and shows up for the role others turned down but is essential to the story.
She’s on her spot when the curtain goes up.
I am grateful for the best universal healthcare system in the world in Canada, and don’t want to take it for granted. And I don’t want to take the providers for granted either.
The reviews are stellar as the credits roll.
Have a good Labour Day long weekend and fan mail to you blood movie star!!!
Modified from my original post at http://annhoy.com/grateful-for-the-health-care-from-the-blood-star-at-the-lab/