Antonis, one of our volunteers, shares two heart-warming stories from his work for the hospice.
In the lesson on what palliative care is we filled two boards with descriptions of what this can include.
But this story, about a time I helped drive a patient to an appointment, shows how there are no limits to what this definition can include.
I was taking a patient to have some tests, and his wife Dimitra remained very quiet during the journey. A short while after this he died and Dimitra continued coming to Galilee as a patient herself.
I was taking her somewhere on the first working day after the March 25th Holiday. On this occasion she wanted to talk, and during the journey she told me about all the problems she was dealing with (losing her husband, financial worries and so on). As I listened I was moved to tears. Wanting to keep up the conversation, after a few minutes I asked her how she had spent the Holiday. Her face lit up straightaway, her eyes widened, and she broke out in a huge smile. She said, “My sister invited me to her house and we had fish with garlic sauce, and I really enjoyed it. I like cooking traditional dishes. The day before yesterday I was preparing artichoke stew and a neighbour called me over, and the food got burnt. Do you mind stopping at a supermarket so that I can get some more? ” Of course I was happy to do so, as practical help as well as keeping company and listening , is also important in palliative care!
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