On Facebook, President Nelson shared an incredible and powerful story of two little girls he operated on who visited him one night from beyond the veil.
President Nelson told more of the story in October 2015 general conference:
“Fifty-eight years ago I was asked to operate upon a little girl, gravely ill from congenital heart disease. Her older brother had previously died of a similar condition. Her parents pleaded for help. I was not optimistic about the outcome but vowed to do all in my power to save her life. Despite my best efforts, the child died. Later, the same parents brought another daughter to me, then just 16 months old, also born with a malformed heart. Again, at their request, I performed an operation. This child also died. This third heartbreaking loss in one family literally undid me.
“I went home grief stricken. I threw myself upon our living room floor and cried all night long. Dantzel stayed by my side, listening as I repeatedly declared that I would never perform another heart operation. Then, around 5:00 in the morning, Dantzel looked at me and lovingly asked, ‘Are you finished crying? Then get dressed. Go back to the lab. Go to work! You need to learn more. If you quit now, others will have to painfully learn what you already know.’”
In the April 2016 Priesthood Session, President Nelson told the rest of the story—a beautiful ending for both him and the grieving family.
Here’s how he summarized it on facebook just recently:
Read the full account on his General Conference talk here.
