12th May:
International Nurses Day
May 12 is the birthday of Florence Nightingale, “the Lady with a Lamp.” And the world, fittingly, celebrates International Nurses Day. The theme of the day for 2022 is: Nurses: A Voice to Lead – Invest in nursing and respect rights to secure global health. The theme focusses on “the need to protect, support and invest in the nursing profession to strengthen health systems around the world.”
May we never forget the millions of nurses who fought the onslaught of Coronavirus 19. Today, it is appropriate that we think of securing their rights and respect for nurses all over the world. No payment is enough for the lives they touch and heal.
I propose three words as a way of rendering honour towards nurses all over the world:
- Respect: Nursing is not primarily about money. It’s about service to humanity – to the broken bodies, minds, hearts and souls. It calls for sacrifice to serve day in and day out. It demands undying commitment to be at the bedside of the sick. It takes great deal of courage to face all kinds of diseases. They deserve respect, honour and justice.
- Gratitude: A thank you note from the patient or their dear one’s can certainly lift up the spirit of nurses. They are human beings like any of us. A care-giver does need care expressed in a simple note of appreciation or a token of gratitude.
- Vocation: For a healthy and happy world, it needs more generous young people who will offer their life in the service of humanity as nurses. The quality of life of a society can be gauged with the care given to the weakest. Millions of sick people need to know that they matter. And the world needs millions of generous young people to tell them that through health care.
I was moved to tears by the performance of Northwell Health Nurse Choir at “America’s Got Talent” Season 16 in 2021. The audition got the golden buzzer with emotional words of appreciation and affection from the judge Howie Mandel. The show capsules thousands of untold heroics and commitment of the millions of nurses. It inspires hope and carries respect and gratitude that we owe to the huge army of nurses all over the world. I suggest that you watch it too to be touched by their performance and stories.
15th May:
International Day of Families
The theme of the International day of Families of 2022 is “Families and New Technologies.”
Social media and more importantly personal media are invading the private and hallowed space of families. Marriages are breaking up on account extra-marital affairs augmented by indiscrete use personal media; Impersonal relationships and familial disconnect are on the increase. Intimacies and close bonds of families are replaced by digital bonding and virtual relationships.
In such scenario, strengthening of family life is a sure protection against the tendency to seek refuge in the virtual world. Relationships among siblings, parents and children need to fostered through various family moments, such as meals, prayer, dialogue, picnics, outings, etc. In addition, ground rules for the use of personal media should be laid down so that they do not encroach the sacred times of family life.
The governmental, non-governmental, religious and social institutions have to make a concerted effort to protect, promote, preserve and re-instate the pristine dignity and absolute importance of family life to provide a healthy environment for children’s growth.
Addressing a gathering of Catholic men’s and women’s association at Ranchi, Benjamin Lakra, ex IAS officer, gave three decisive tips to create a happy family:
- Daily prayer moment as a family: God is the origin and source of a family. He unites a man and a woman in a marital union and blesses their conjugal love with children. A family needs to live by this spiritual truth and nourish itself every day through family prayer.
- One Daily meal as a family: A family meal binds, bonds and unites members of a family emotionally and spiritually. Hence, a family must come together at least for one meal every day.
- Welcome a guest as a family: When every member of a family welcomes a guest, respect and esteem is accorded not only to the guest, but also to every member of that family. This is a very important message for children and the aged members of a family.
Fr Shilanand Kerketta SDB
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