A Glimpse of My Heart

Many people have asked me over the years why I chose to be a nurse. I would have to say that I feel nursing is pure and genuine. It is dealing with people at a gut level; human being to human being. When people learn that you are a nurse, they so trustingly open up their lives to you. It is an honored opportunity to assist people in the battle to regain their health, or deal with an acute or chronic illness….. My goal in my nursing career, as well as in this book is that as we serve our fellow man so we might come to know ourselves better… Nursing can be hard work and very stressful at times. But to me it is about the moments…moments when there is such a connection with another human spirit, and you can feel that you make a difference in another life; by your presence, your knowledge, your insight, and hopefully your wisdom. When you can calm a fear, hold a hand, ease a pain, touch a heart, it is as if your souls are touching. It is why I love doing what I do. I feel so proud of what I do and that is one of the reasons I wrote this book “One Nurse’s Story.” I wanted to let people know what nursing is really like, and share some of the moments that I have experienced. Although the details have been changed to maintain patient privacy, the essences of the stories are the same…. May I always be mindful of the pride that I feel being in this profession and never take this gift for granted, or the responsibility lightly. May I never lump people together according to their diagnosis or malady. May I see them as individuals with hopes and lives and dreams and loved ones as important as I feel mine are. May I speak of them when they can’t hear my words just as if we were talking face-to-face. May my tone of voice and mannerisms, as well as the words I speak portray acceptance, support and confidence. May my knowledge base be solid and ongoing, my assessments be accurate and my teaching be useful and well received. May my touch be gentle and my hand be steady. May I treat each person whose care I am entrusted with as I would my own loved one. May I see divinity in each life I care for. These are the goals for which I continue to strive.