“What’s your name?”

That’s what my Dad asks every hospital employee that walks in the room. Whether it is a doctor in the white coat, a nurse taking his blood pressure, or a housekeeper emptying the garbage.

Dad has been in the hospital for two weeks now with intense pancreatitis pain. Nearly every time they ask him to rate the pain on a scale from 0 to 10, he replies that it is an 8.

If I was enduring that kind of pain, you wouldn’t want to sit in the hospital room with me for long.  And if you came in to empty the trash, I doubt I would learn your name.

But Dad–even though he is hurting–wants to know their names. He asks the CNA who is changing his sheets, “What’s your name? I hope you’re in school. You’ll be a good nurse one day.” He asked Annie what her name is as she mopped the floor. He made sure that he pronounced the doctor’s name correctly as he thanked him for listening. If he misses someone’s name, he asks me as the heavy brown door shuts behind them, “What was her name?”

Everyone in the hospital is sure to learn the name of the doctor in the white coat. He’s important. I have a feeling, though, that Annie isn’t asked very often what her name is as she clangs the lid on the garbage when she pulls out the trash bag full of empty cups and take-out boxes.

We learn the names of people who we think are important. Think about whose names you know, and it will probably reveal some of your values.

When we get out of this hospital, I’m going to learn some names. I’m going to move some anonymous people in my world to a first name basis.

Right now I can’t tell you the names of the ladies who slice the ham and cheese for me at the deli counter. I don’t know the name of the man who puts ice on my fish after he selects the ones I have my eye on for supper. I don’t know the name of the lady that I pay my overdue fees to at the public library— I will tend to that when I return.

But I will because I’ve been watching Dad do it all week, and it makes a difference.

It gives value to the other person.

It’s an easy way to show respect.

God knows my name. My dad knows Annie’s name. Surely I can learn the names of the people around me.

“He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.” John 10:3