They call me dolphin. I am the breath of heaven. 

When you ask for me, I take you out to play, away from the tests and the medicines.Away from the pain and the fear. We splash in the cool water together, and as I swim, you ride with me on my back. The sun is warm, and you laugh out loud. 

They call me dolphin. I am the breath of heaven. 

Do you know that dolphin means womb? Before you were born, when you were very, very tiny, you lived in your mother's womb, and you were so happy there--warm and cuddly and so happy. Her womb protected you, and you grew bigger and bigger until it was time for you to be born. I protect you, too, and do my best to help you to grow healthy and strong. 

You are the breath of heaven. They call you child. 

When you float quietly with me in the calm, clear water, I teach you my secrets. I show you how I breathe through my blowhole, and how I make a spray that glistens in the sun like tiny diamonds. You breathe deeply like I do, and like me, you send the cool air everywhere in your body. You even send it to the tips of your toes. It makes you feel so good. So free. So filled with new energy. When it's time to breathe out, you blow gently and tell your hurt to go away with the old air. It does. 

You are the breath of heaven. They call you child. 

Do you know that I can talk? I make a clickety-click sound. I click so that I can learn--about where we are together, and where we should go, and what makes you the precious child that you are. And I click to help you heal. You can feel my clicks, and you love the tingly way they tiptoe all over your body. You can hear them, too, as you listen very carefully. You listen to me, and I listen to you. 

Heaven surrounds us. We are one. 

When you are lonely or sad, remember me, and call me to your side. When you are sick or hurt, whisper your feelings and I will hear. I will take you on my back to visit my family, and we will surround you with love. We play, and our whistles and squeaks make you laugh. What a beautiful laugh. It touches the sky and stretches around the world. It is magic and it softens those hard feelings. Now you breathe them out, and they disappear over the glassy waves. 

Our eyes meet, our souls touch, and Heaven is our breath. 
 

Joan Fleitas, Ed.D., R.N.
Associate Professor of Nursing, Lehman COllege, CUNY
Bronx, New York 10468