In the Middle of the Night

I'm really not used to being at work in the middle of the night. To be honest, it's really quite nice. Very calm and peaceful compared to the utter chaos of the day. If I could actually get some sleep during the day, this might be something I could handle. But, sleep is quite important to me...
Ellie got to stay this weekend at her Aunt's house for the very first time. She was beside herself, she was so excited. She told Daddy about a hundred times not to pick her up from school on Friday, that she was probably going to stay two nights, so please pack her clothes. She seems to be having a good time.
Well since I have time...On Christmas morning I got unexpectedly cancelled. While that was great, that I got to stay home with my family, I couldn't go back to sleep after getting woke unexpectedly that early in the morning. So I laid their and for whatever reason started thinking of when Hurricane Katrina hit. After New Orleans flooded, some of the kiddos were evacuated to our hospital from the children's hospital there. I was charging Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and they came on thursday morning. We didn't have anyone here those days to accept donations, so that responsibility fell to me. I will never forget the outporing from the community. I spent the entire day friday and saturday accepting wagon after wagon full of donations. By lunchtime that friday, I had received over $1000 in gift cards. I had them all in a little paper bag by my desk, and I had a heck of a time walking away, even after I kept hiding them. Finally, the pharmacist gave me a locked bin in the medication machine to keep them in, so I wouldn't have to stalk them. The hallway was full of wagons of donations. I had never seen such generosity in my life, and to this day, that still sticks with me.
I don't know why I thought of that on Christmas morning. I can't even remember what brought it on. I just know I was thinking, I want to see this all the time, and I want everyone to know what it's like, to be so overwhelmed with kindness and goodness. I hope that my girls will someday know what that feels like. I wasn't the receiver of the gifts. But I tell you what. I got to hand out those gifts. And I remember the familes just sobbing and saying how thankful they were. And, of course, I cried a little too. So while those who gave so much may never know it, they truely made a diference. If only we could all be so lucky.