I "see dead people" for a living ... lol. I guess I should have elaborated on that more in my first post. No, I'm not clairvoyant. I don't see ghosts. I don't speak to the dead. And I don't practice VooDoo (thank goodness - I have enough problems trying to stay sane as it is!!!).
I am employed by the Medical Examiner's Office. I see, smell, and hear (I said hear, not speak to) dead people all day. Working here has definitely increased my appreciation for life. Some things you should just never take for granted.
Day in and day out we see other's loved ones come through our facility. We speak to new mother's who wake up one morning to realize their newborn baby isn't moving or breathing in his crib and is told her baby's cause of death is SIDS.
We speak to the wife of a police officer who was killed in a motor vehicle accident in the line of duty while trying to stop a drunken mad man evading the police.
We speak to the father of a teenage girl who went joy-riding with her boyfriend on his motorcycle and have to tell the father that had his baby girl been wearing a helmet she would still be alive today.
We speak to a wife at 9:30 a.m. who's 48 yr old husband had just kissed her goodbye not 2 hours earlier as he headed off to work to provide for his family and have to inform her that he won't be coming home today as he had a heart attack on the way to work, but also want to inform her that he's a hero. He's a hero because instead of continuing to travel down the highway in his vehicle and possibly causing a pile up which could possibly result in more deaths, he instead chose to pull over on the side of the road where he was found minutes later by Highway Patrolmen. He had the presence of mind to know that something wasn't quite right with him and saved alot of other families potential heartache.
Day in and day out we live, to an extent, what these families are feeling. Some days are particularly more difficult than others. And on those days I grab pizzas on the way home, hug my kids extra longer and extra tighter when I arrive home, and we snuggle up on my bed together while we eat pizza and watch a movie. Some things you should just never take for granted.
I am also employed by a blood and tissue procurement agency part-time after hours wherein we recover skin, tissue, bone, heart valves, veins, and nerves from cadavers for processing companies. In particular, skin grafts are recovered and sent to Shriner's to be processed and used at hospitals for children who are severe burn victims. So if you know anyone who will be an organ donor, or if you know a family who has consented to organ donation on behalf of their loved one, know that they are my heroes. And if you're still blessed with their presence, hug them a little tighter today. Tomorrow is not promised. Some things you should just never take for granted.
