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(Sketch is set inside a hospital ICU room)
Nurse:
I’m sorry about your father’s accident. Is he a religious man?
Raymond:
(snickering) Yeah, right!
Debbie:
Ignore him. Actually, he accepted Christ at my church last Easter!
Nurse:
That’s good.
Raymond:
Yeah, but tons of people get sucked into the whole Easter hype….
(nurse tiptoes out with an “uh-oh” expression)
Debbie:
Raymond, you don’t know anything! Dad’s a Christian, ok?
Raymond:
Well, then why didn’t he join your church then?
Debbie:
He just DIDN’T, alright? It's complicated! (she huffs and begins to cry)
Raymond:
Oh, come on, Sis, I didn’t mean to upset you…..old habits (He reaches out to lift her chin).
Nurse:
(enters back in as if she had never left) When was your father baptized?
Raymond:
He wasn't.
Debbie:
He hadn’t done it yet (wiping her tears with a tissue). He wanted to wait until the whole family could be there. And now….(begins to sob again and sits in the chair beside her father).
Nurse:
Oh, sorry I asked. I just thought….(stops in the middle & changes subject) I’m sure he is a wonderful man.
Raymond:
(Sarcastically) Opinions vary!
Debbie:
(distracted by the nurse’s earlier comment) What were you going to say earlier—you just thought what?
Nurse:
Well, since you asked….I just thought that a person wasn’t saved unless he was baptized.
Raymond:
I think she’s right, Debbie. Better rent a bathtub real quick!
Debbie:
You know, you’re not funny at all, Raymond! Dad is sitting here fighting for his life! If you can’t be thankful for the man who put food on the table for us and bought you the designer clothes you always wore, then you can just LEAVE!!!!
Raymond:
And I deserved every fiber of that clothing. It made up for the TIME he never spent with me! And he can’t hear us! He’s unconscious!
Nurse:
Actually, he can hear you. It’s probably best to take this conversation to the hallway.
Raymond:
No problem. I can’t breathe in here anyway.
(he exits but stays just outside the room)
Debbie:
(leaning over her father) Dad, I’m so sorry you’re here. You’re going to be ok, dad. I’m going to pray so right now.
Nurse:
(interrupting) I’m sorry if I upset you with my comments. I’m sure he is a good man.
Debbie:
Thank you. But he’s more than just a good man. He’s a Christian. I know, because he was different from that moment forward. He wasn’t the same grumpy, hardened ole toot that he was before that day.
Nurse:
That’s amazing, but--I was just always taught that if you wanted to go to heaven, you had to be baptized first.
Debbie:
My belief is that Christians are commanded to be baptized as an act of obedience, commitment and dedication to our new relationship with Him. It is that, and yet still so much more.
Nurse:
OKkkk.....But just in case, I could call in the Chaplain and see if we could get something set up for him when he’s conscious.
Debbie:
Thank you, but when he’s all better, we can do it at my church, with all of his family around, just like he was waiting for….
(son walks back in)
Raymond:
I know I’ll be there. (He is trying to rub away the tears streaming down his cheeks).
Debbie:
That’s all he ever wanted, you know.
(while they are embracing one another, the father "comes to")
Nurse:
Well, look who’s joining the conversation!!! How ya feelin, Mr. Miller?
Father:
(weak and strained) Like I’ve been hit by a truck.
Debbie:
(grinning) That’s because you have, Dad.
Raymond:
Yeah, a truck going 60 mph with you sitting at the stoplight.
Father:
(whincing as he tries to sit up) No wonder I feel like I’m broken into a million pieces.
Raymond:
(grabbing his hand) Well, Dad, we’re all here for you.
Father:
I heard (clearing his throat), I heard your conversation, you know.
Raymond:
Uh oh, which part?
Father:
I did become a Christian that day….and I love Jesus no matter what happens after this.
Raymond:
But what about all that baptism stuff?
Father:
I can’t wait. I’ve pictured it in my head a thousand times. All of my family and the church will be there. It will symbolize the miracle of Life that has taken place in me. All will witness that I am a new man.
Nurse:
I do believe you’re already a new man, Mr. Miller.
Debbie:
A new man indeed!
(lights fade)
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