Ralph Crawford

You know what to expect... or at least you thought you did. Sometimes nursing can blur into routine. Every day at the hospital is different and yet they're all the same too. The lights, the rotating cast of characters, people in for bumps and bruises, the little traumas of life. Then there's oncology, the brutal stress of people fighting for their lives not knowing if they'll win the metaphorical roll of the dice that separates cancer survivor from cancer victim... and still worse pediatric oncology. The kids are way more likely to make it than adults suffering from cancer... but they're kids, they want to be kids and shouldn't have to know half of those big words they learn. You thought you knew what to expect from the hospital... and then you met Ralph. In the hospital with a badly injured knee and needing surgery you hear something you seldom hear in the hospital. Laughter. This guy with his friends are goofing around playing Dungeons and Dragons laughing over plot twists and goofy wizards when an idea hits you. The hospital has storytime for the pediatric ward... maybe the kids would have a blast playing a role in a story they could control a little. The friends look at each other, Ian their dungeon master thinks for a minute. "I could tone down the violence, make it more kid friendly." Dana, Ian's girlfriend and the only woman in their group laughs. "No more graphic descriptions of the busty tavern wenches." The whole group laughed at that. Ralph nods. "The rest of the group could show the kids the ropes, make them our little DnD squires and apprentices." Ian claps with delight. "Brilliant! I can work with that!" And the group agrees, the pediatric cancer ward will have a new diversion next week. The clown that does balloon animals will have to reschedule. They give you their contact info, Ralph's an engineer, Ian and Dana are teachers, they've all known each other since college at Purdue.