Talk to the Hand

I did my daily sweep through the NICU this morning. This visit always begins with an obligatory 2-minute handwashing (timed!) before entry.

I wash my hands in innocence, o Lord, that I may go in procession round your altar, Singing aloud a song of thanksgiving and recounting all your wonderful deeds. - Ps. 26:6-7

Baby after baby, small (700g) and large (2900g), healthy and not-so, sleeping and awake. At this time of the morning, only a few parents are visiting. Each little babe receives a little prayer from me and a peek under the hood. Each baby space is kept dark to assist their little brains in forming and maturing. It's kept light in the space only if there is a need to help their liver functioning, in which case a blue-ish disco light is on.

So many wonderful little babes!

I wonder what they are thinking? I wonder what their parents feel, seeing them here? I wonder what their future holds? I pray for God's presence and comfort and healing.

Today, I met the mother of precious little twins. They've been here a month as of today. "Baby Girl 1" and "Baby Girl 2" is about all the identification they get. I talked to the mother, asked how she felt about going home with them soon, and knelt beside her to say a prayer for their little family.

Life was good, mom was glad to see me, and I was on my way. "Before I leave, may I peek under her blanket?" I asked Mom. "Of course!" she replied.

There's the little girl, trying to sleep. Her head is turned away from me, but her perfectly formed hand is poking out towards me. From under her swaddling blankets, she's saying to me with her hand, "STOP RIGHT THERE... talk to the hand."

Well, she put me back in my place. It ain't about me here.

Into your hands, O God, we place your children. Support them in their successes and in their failures, in their joys and in their sorrows. As they grow in age, may they grow in grace and in knowledge of You.

In Whose Hands are you, right now?