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yes?
    “ Yeah, she’s right here.” Misty put her hand over the phone. “Dr. Vitter for you.”
    Snapping back into work mode, Kathryn stood. “I’ll take it in my office.” She strode down the hall, knowing what was waiting on the other side of the phone call. Another patient. Without really thinking and because it was always her first line of defense, she whispered in her heart, “Lord, please be with this person and their family as they begin their transition to You.”
    In her office she sat down, wiped her eyes as if Dr. Vitter could see her pathetic state, picked up the phone, and pushed the blinking button. “This is Kathryn.”
    “ Kathryn, oh, good.” He sounded genuinely relieved, and she knew this was more than a routine call. “Listen, I’ve got some rather bad news, and I’m afraid I’m going to need some help with this one.”
    “ Okay. What’s up?” Her prayers kicked into a higher gear.
    “ Well, I’m sure you remember Dr. Warren with the oversight office.”
    “ Yes.”
    “ Well, he was admitted on Friday night, and I’m afraid I just got the MRI’s back. It does not look good.”
    “ Oh. I’m sorry to hear that.” On her desk, she wrote, Dr. Warren. MRI. “Is this a stroke or a car accident or what?” Not that it really mattered, but it was always nice to have the information going into any meeting with the family.
    “ A massive stroke. The family’s really struggling with the hospice decision. I think it’s a matter of not understanding the program. I was wondering if you could come talk with them just to maybe put their mind at ease, you know?”
    “ Yes. All right. Are they there right now?”
    “ I can let them know you’re on your way.”
    “ I’ll be there in ten.”
    “ Thanks, Kathryn.”
    She almost said her good-byes.
    “ And Kathryn?”
    “ Yes?”
    “ Go easy, okay? This is really a tough one.”
    Nodding, she steadied her heart. They were all tough. “I will.” She hung up, stood, and left the rest of her work behind. As many of these meetings as she had had over the course of her career, they never got any easier, and she never wanted them to. It was too important that she not become hardened to the difficulty of the transition of death. No matter how many times she went through it, she had to remember that the family had not had nearly so much practice. Most had had none at all.
    She boarded the elevator and let her gaze slide up to the numbers above. “Dear Lord, please be with the Warrens. Give them Your love. Help me to help them through this difficult time. Give me the right words, God. Please, do this through me…”
     
     
    Never had Ben ever wanted to feel like this again—like his world was shattering and there wasn’t a thing he could do about it. He remembered this pain with crystal-clear clarity. In fact, it was still so fresh, he wondered if he had ever truly forgotten it. Tears came to his eyes, but he beat them back. He couldn’t start crying now. If he did, he might never stop.
    Hunched over his knees in the waiting room, he pushed his mind to topics that he might be able to deal with. Things like how things were at work and if Simon had called the Naxel Company yet to explain the situation. Explain the situation. Ha. That was a joke. Ben wanted to scream, “How did this happen?” And inside he was screaming that and so much more. How he was managing to keep it all on the inside, he had no clue because it felt like it might burst from him at any moment.
    “ Ben?” Dr. Vitter suddenly appeared right in front of him, and Ben snapped to attention, yanking himself out of the chair. He shook the doctor’s hand without really understanding where reality had gone. “Ben, this is Kathryn Walker. She’s the social worker in our hospice program.”
    “ Mr. Warren.” Ms. Walker stepped forward and shook his hand although the world was tilting into that not making any sense realm again.
    “ Ms. Uh Walker.” He nodded, tried to