A man in his 90's was surrounded by his four daughters. You could feel the love, thick in the air. The patient had had a stroke.
His son-in-law shared that the two of them had become close. They had been working in the yard when the patient became ill.
When I asked about the patient's history, I discovered that he was an Army veteran. We had just received a fresh shipment of blankets from our volunteers, and I had one in red, white and blue with the Army insignia in the center.
When I brought it up to the patient, the family was ecstatic. There were pictures taken of the blanket, of the blanket on the patient, of the patient's smile, crooked though it was. The patient began to share stories of his Army days, how the colonel had found him sleeping on the job, among other short tales.
When I left the room, the son-in-law stopped me. He pressed $25 into my hand. I told him that the blankets were free. He said, "No, this is for the fabric to make another one. Another veteran needs to know how much he is appreciated." This was said with tears in his eyes. I took the money and set it aside for the Quilt Guild.