“I’ll take my lunch later,” I told my head nurse.

I held Betty’s hand while her breathing slowed to almost nothing. Her family hadn’t visited in weeks.

“It’s okay. You can go now. He’s waiting for you.”

I smoothed her hair, and she relaxed as she took her last breath.

Catherine McAllister loves her work as an emergency room nurse and also enjoys teaching nursing students. She has two lovely daughters, three lively dogs, and a supportive husband. She writes in her free time.