The first thing that I saw upon entering the Hospital of Santa Maria Nuova was a very familiar sight - even within American hospitals - a chapel. It was called La Chiesa di Sant'Egidio. Inside, I saw a small group of people reciting the rosary; the sign outside said that there was a daily rosary / mass heold in the chapel! As I passed this, I couldn't help but to think of how many people must have at one point or another entered into that chapel to pray for their loved ones and friends in the hospital... without a doubt, this can be viewed as a form of charity!
I walked through the first floor - past a bar & snack area, and I finally found an elevator. At first this was very confusing, because there were at least five different elevators each stopping at different levels! When I went to the third floor, I only saw offices, which were not that interesting.. so I didn't stay for too long... However, when I dropped down one floor, I saw the "Ambulatorio Cardiologica" ... I continued searching around and I walked through a few hallways. I must admit, it was surprising to see a functioning hospital right in the city center of Florence, an otherwise tourist destination!
In one of the hallways, I noticed a bulletin board with a bunch of letters pinned onto it... As I drew closer, I realized that the board was full with letters from the patients' families and friends! There, I read notes of encouragement, "get well soon" wishes and even photos... This is yet another form of charity I found in the hospital. Especially when you're ill, it must be relieving to know that people care about you and that your loved ones remember you in their prayers and thoughts.
Overall, my visit to the hospital was short and sweet - I looked around, took some pictures, and observed the two aspects of the hospital which I thought were most relevant to my topic of charity: the chapel and the bulletin board full of get well wishes!
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