Casper

My oldest dog Casper was put down today, but truly, I'm at peace with it. He was the first dog I ever got. I remember begging my dad to let us get a dog, so so much as an 8 year old girl. And Easter weekend when I was 9, my mom came and got me from school and said she had a surprise in the car. I thought it was my Aunt Sharon to spend the weekend with us. It was a shy, tiny bishon frise. So we went to the pet store to get supplies, etc. and I was holding him and he barfed on the floor he was so nervous. So we put him in the cart and so began our life with bubba boy, Casper. I remember countless times him running out the front door and us chasing him down the street trying to bribe him with treats. He was a sweet dog. Gave me much more than he will ever know. Goodbye, I know you are in a better place.

Friday Favorites first!

So in honor of others doing friday favorite's I must too now join in the fun. Happy graduation to me. I have earned myself a BSN degree from Beth El College of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. My gracious mother has given me this necklace too, so beautiful very much my style, simple yet elegant. Thank you everyone for your support on this journey of nursing school;there is nothing like it in the world. I love you all.

The moment

What was that moment that solidified your choice of your career?

Mine was while I was in Mexico on a mission trip with a bunch of students from Azusa Pacific. So there was this man who had diabetes so bad that he could not feel this legs, but he stilled walked with a cane. He had an ulcer on one of his feet, now when I say ulcer, I'm not talking that second degree clean, kinda wet one we all think of. I'm talking forth degree, gangrenous down to the muscle, very close to the bone, smelly and only something you would see in a third world country. The doctor got to choose one of the students to be "first assist" in debridement, he chose me (which was such an honor). I got to suction, I use that term loosely, I really just put on some gloves and used gauze and tweezers to help clean up the wound. We were not in an OR or even a hospital, we were in a church running a clinic for the people of Chiapas. We were not sterile or even close to it. Before we began the debridement we all gathered and held hands and this gentle man said the most beautiful prayer I'd ever heard, I understood little, but the faith that he had in God, us Americans and in the doctor was amazing. This was when I knew what true faith was. It was unwavering and peaceful. I can't say that I have that kind of faith yet, but I try.

The doctor after the debridement said to the whole group that if that man were in the states we would have had both legs amputated years ago. The access to care across the world is such a huge issue so I'm in awe that my friend Nicole is volunteering in a clinic in Peru for a month. She is also very faithful.

As I reflect on this moment, I did not even realize that I loved OR at that point, but that love grew through many clinical experiences in "OR's." People have so much faith in surgeons and anethesiologists that it amazes me.

So with that, I've been apply for jobs and hoping someday that moment when I have life in my hands I will have faith and knowledge to better the life of the patient and my colleagues.

one more...

So I had a relaxing yet productive day.

I went to the gym and I hate to say it, but I did a half assed workout and left after 30 minutes, but I guess some is more than none.

Then I listened to a webinar from ANA (American Nurses' Association) called "Lead from where you stand." It was not what I expected, but good none the less. I thought it would be more about how to take a stand and be involved more with ANA and other organizations; it was actually a pep talk about how we all are interconnected and each of us can impact the world. The presenter had a few good points I thought I'd share. She shared a story about WWII and how all of the older sailors survived yet the younger more knowledgable stronger sailors did not and that the british government did some research into why the older sailers were the survivors and the response from the sailors was that they knew that if they just held on long enough or pushed a little more the storms would soon pass. hence the title of this post, I have one last exam for all of nursing school except the state board exam. And that story really gave me the push I needed to continue studying and keep focused.

I then proceeded to study for like 4 hours with Courtney, who is AWESOME! She's funny and smart.

BTW I passes my peds class with an A. Not that I like to brag about my grades and such, I'm proud that I was able to do well.

I gotta go have a cherry bar, they smell delic and watch BL. So Jillian Michaels is not going to be on BL anymore, but ... She is going to be a cohost on the Doctors. So instead of once a week it's now 5x a week. WIN!

Be extraordinary, live courageously.