Object: A nurse's cap.

Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have ever been hurt so badly that you had to go to the hospital to be cared for by the doctors and nurses? (Let them answer.) Some of you have been there. Do you remember how afraid you were? (Let them answer.) First of all, you hurt pretty badly, and second you were not sure what was going to happen to you. That would make anyone afraid. Do you remember how nice the nurses were to you that day and every day that you were in the hospital? (Let them answer.) They were really something special and they made all of the worry and fear go right out of you.

I brought along a nurse's cap with me this morning so that you could think about nurses when I tell you a big word. The word is "compassion," and that is what the nurses f…