Pt .21 The Call-Out
“ So AW how was your food talk with Beth?”….. AW replies,” Mon I tell you brother, she kinda broke my heart when she told me about the Starfruit. How it would pretty much be talking to my rave der Boy!” ….. “ But she’s very knowledgeable about her profession. I can dig it.”, “ Now I’ll just have to process me changing my diet since I’m on this Dialysis thingy!” ( as she looks at the machine up and down as the lights blink and different sounds)….. Dwelyn I see all your coworkers and yourself moving back and forth, up and down, side to side, and I think I saw someone do a cartwheel Mon!” LOL ( as she chuckles hard) . “ Do you all have enough people here to work Mon?”, “ This Place be busy boy!”….. I replied with laughter ,” Yes AW ,we are missing a person today. Her name is Jade. She had to miss work today.“…… “ Ah I see. What happened to her?”
(At the very beginning of this story I mentioned we had a Call-Out, and we were short one Technician today.) Jade has been with us for about 3 years. She transferred from out of state to start a new life for her and her daughter. She was originally from Chicago,IL . The Windy City. She surely missed the excitement of the city, but there were also incidents she wished she could forget . Jade was gorgeous and a beautiful soul inside out. Her father was an African American paramedic in the city of Chicago who was killed in a shoot out during an emergency call when Jade was 13 her mother was born in Berlin Germany and was a nursing assistant for years with the aspirations of becoming a registered nurse. Unfortunately Jade’s mother fell ill and passed away two years prior to Jade moving to Phoenix. Jade had this defined beauty about her that was ravishing. The most admirable thing about her was her demeanor . It was so peaceful and welcoming. That made her a beautiful soul to us and our patients. It was her gift.
( As Jade sits on the side of her bed in the dark. Her 7-year-old daughter Indigo lay beside her in sleep . Snoring lightly … Dressed in her school clothes of her favorite outfit that resembled a princess, backpack and favorite toy of an African American doll suited up as a Nurse. Today was picture day for Indigo at her school, but unfortunately Indigo is feeling under the weather. Jade is dressed in her hot pink scrubs, crying hopelessly thinking about the horrible luck she has been having this past year. Head held down as if she was all alone in the world. Heart beating rapidly. Hands shaking nervously. Tear drops have fallen to the wooden floor forming a dense puddle of tears. There were even drops on her new nursing clog shoes . Her school books and backpack beside her on her right . Her lunch bag on her left. Purse strapped across her body. From the early 03:00 am call in she’s attempting to make. Looking at her cell phone with despair and guilt , moonlight shines through the window bouncing off of her cheek bones of tears as well. She has just entered the nursing program at the local community college in which she was so determined and dedicated to achieve this goal in her life to provide for her daughter and herself. She only wanted the best for her child Indigo. To have her not want for anything and to be proud of her mother. To be an inspiration was the priority. Jade was a definite Team player who was always willing to help and worked countless hours since she was the breadwinner and provider of her household. She lived in a one-bedroom apartment with her and her daughter. The apartment was about 20 mins away from the KidneyTrails Dialysis Clinic. There was a bus stop two blocks away along with the metro system where Jade had access to public transportation. They both shared a bedroom due to the fact Jade couldn’t afford a two-bedroom apartment. Her kitchen was the size of a two-person walkway. The refrigerator is not heavily full of food but just enough for them both. Indigo loved mac n cheese. So Jade made sure she kept that in place for her. The table in the kitchen consisted of designed place mats Indigo made in school. Indigo was very creative. A future artist in the making. Jade’s school books and laptop are also in the kitchen on a small desk she got at the local thrift store. So you can just imagine toys and girls and women’s clothes everywhere throughout the apartment. Jades scrub and her daughters dress up in attire scattered about throughout the apartment here and there. Jade would always read to Indigo before putting her to bed at night and then go out to the living room to study afterwards. Late night early morning studying was a norm for her. It was okay because Jade was humble, and she knew the outcome of finishing school and having a job, I mean a career as a Dialysis Technician made her feel a part of something, and she could make a difference, and it also gave her peace. The patients loved her and she loved them. Patients would actually be sad when she wasn’t at work. Some days we would offer her a ride to work, or she would catch a cab or public transportation to work. The struggle was that her time to report for work was too early for public transportation, and sometimes she wouldn’t have the funds to afford public transportation. It happens. We all have been there. We as a Team had her back. I remember picking her up one morning as she was walking to work occasionally. I tell you she couldn’t catch a break, but she never gave up. She definitely maintained her composure. She kept a positive attitude as much as she could.
Here’s the text message we received from Jade prior to coming to work this morning.
Jade:
“ Good morning team. I called Carmen our FA earlier. So very sorry to be writing this , this early in the morning. I will not be in today due to me not having someone to watch Indigo. She’s not feeling well due to her having a high fever . I hope it’s not COVID-19. I’m also having car trouble. It’s hard for me right now with all the things going on in my life. Juggling school, being a single parent, managing my household, no social life, trying to make ends meet, and not to mention my endless car issues….. things have been a bit overwhelming for me. Unfortunately I will not be in today. Dicyn I hope you will understand and if you can close for me tonight, I’ll make it up to you. Team I’m so very sorry please forgive me. “
Dicyn:
So sorry about your car. That can be very stressful. Not a problem. I’ll get Denym to close with me too. Keep us posted. If you need a ride let me know.
Denym:
It’s okay Jade. We got you.
Ashley:
Aww man. Bummer. We totally understand. No worries.
Dwelyn:
Hey there it’s cool. Sorry for what’s going on. We are here for you. Stay strong. And we got you.
Juan:
It’s all good Jade. We will still maintain Cool Vibes.
Jade:
Thanks guys. I really appreciate it. I’ll still try to get there later on after the first turnover. Love you guys. You’re the best.
Kidney Trails Kind KNOWte:
We all have a story. We all go through things in life that may seem easy to you and an endless task for me. Vice/Versa. Some days we are always starting over. Some days we feel like giving up. The saying goes,” There’s nothing more addictive than our past. In this case ,Jade is trying to shake that addiction. The ability to Finish.
Kidney Trails 