Blessed are the hands that heal

It’s a ceremony I’ve heard about at least once a year for my entire life but had never seen before last Thursday.

When your mother is a hospice nurse who takes great pride in her work, it’s impossible not to know what happens at a Blessing of the Hands ceremony. Even the ceremony’s name is fairly descriptive.

Essentially, the Blessing of the Hands is done with oils or water that have been blessed. The leader of the ceremony is a person of faith such as a pastor or priest and is a way to honor and acknowledge the importance of the spiritual aspects found in physical care. Given the significance of hands to caregivers such as nurses, the Blessing serves as a reminder to show God’s love through their work and be compassionate to all they encounter.

The event on Thursday, hosted by the Bladen County Health Department, also included a candlelit walk to honor all of the nurses around the world who use their hands to heal.

It was very special to observe that group of nurses embrace and celebrate one another. During the ceremony, the group acknowledged the experience levels of the nurses. The nurse present with the least amount of experience had been pinned as a Registered Nurse that very day. The nurse with the most experience was pinned in 1971, giving her over 50 years of experience caring for those who needed comfort and healing.

National Nurses Week is observed from May 6 to May 12 each year and coincides with the birthday of Florence Nightingale. Though it is usually more fun to ask a nurse about Ms. Nightingale, she was a nurse leader and social reformer who established the world’s first nursing school.

Although National Nurses Week is over until next year, remember the physical and emotional labor that nurses endure year-round and keep them in your thoughts. After all, though it may not be soon, we will all need a nurse one day.

Thank you to all nurses for everything you do.