Nancy: I had covered pediatrics, which was a short-stay type of floor and I had attachments to the children. We were very close. There was a sense of community, and I really grieved these little kids. I was in the hall one day. Anna stopped me and said, "You work in pediatrics, don't you, Nancy?" I said I did, and she asked, "Will you do me a favor?" I said, "Yeah, why?" She said, "Well, there's a little girl down in oncology who was diagnosed with a brain tumor today."

Anna: I said, "Could you go see her family? This is going to be tough."

Nancy: I think the blood drained out of me. I was so angry at her, I could have killed her. I went downstairs to the chapel, and I was telling God I was really pissed. "Why did you do this to me? Why do I have to go up there? I don't know what I'm going to say. I know the minute I see that kid, I'll become attached to her," and on and on. Then I felt the response to my prayer: that I needed to face this situation. I went back upstairs and walked into the little girl's room. There she was in this big bed. It seemed enormous compared to her little white body with long brown hair and big blue eyes. She was so scared. Her mom and dad weren't there yet. I stayed with her, but I was afraid of her. I was afraid of loving her, afraid of her pain, afraid of her dying. She was afraid of me, too. Later, I started to see her family, and Anna was very involved in that. That was our connection--this little girl. That was when we started spending time together.

Anna: It was a time of us building together. Because of our connection with this child, Nancy and I had a reason to be out of the building together, outside of the confines.

Nancy: It wasn't planned. It just happened, and that's when other things started to happen.

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