“Tom! You’ve got to see it!” the nurse exclaimed from across the hall as I meandered out of the stairwell onto the unit, “The patient in room 11— she’s sitting up!”

The elated nurse had my attention, and now I was excited too. “Wait, really?!”

“Yes, really! She’s looking great. Been sitting in the chair for a good two hours this morning. Go in and say hi!”

Tossing my folder onto the nurses’ station, I swooped into the room, and just as the nurse had said, there was my patient sitting upright in a hospital-issue recliner. More than a month earlier, painful surgeries had left her confined to a specialized bed with virtually nothing to do except attempt to watch daytime television over the hums and drips of machines and medications. It seemed impossible for a while there, but after countless hours of physical therapy to rebuild strength in her legs and back, she was finally sitting upright and smiling. We laughed and celebrated and prayed together; she was one step closer to getting out of the hospital and back to her life. Sure, there were many steps still to go, but we realized the importance of pausing to honor what had already been accomplished.

In our day-to-day lives, we often take things for granted. Feeding ourselves, sitting up, walking, using the bathroom without assistance— most of the time, we barely notice them, but when you spend much of the day working with people who have lost these abilities, they take on new significance. Regaining even one of these skills takes time, determination, and a whole lot of help, so the things we might consider commonplace in our lives can merit major celebrations in a hospital setting.

Experiences like these make me wonder what other things we take for granted.

HIPPA Disclaimer: Due to patient privacy regulations, any stories I share from the hospital will involve changes to protect patients’ identities. Timeframes, diagnoses, and personal identifying information are intentionally changed or left vague.