Home (or at Work) for the Holidays? The SelfLessNess of Nurses during the Holiday Season (721 hits)
Whatever the faith or belief system, nurses perform act after act of random kindness. Nurses strive to make life easier for peers or patients, without the encouragement of Oprah.
Whether by staying late to comfort distressed families, or by volunteering for extra shifts to allow those with small children to open gifts, there are no limits to the amount of "cheer" encompassed by nursing. For a profession accused of eating their young, we can get seriously misty-eyed and nostalgic as stores begin to fill.
Occasionally, we might have to eat some serious crow as well. After writing earlier in 2013 about the hassles faced by those with a handicap, I witnessed an elderly (and unusually spry) woman run ahead of me to grab the door as I struggled to minimize a sudden foot cramp. Apparently not everyone in Wisconsin is abusive if you limp (lol).
But on the concept of "home", nurses are RIGHT ON. If we need to provide care for others, we bring the concept of home to our place of employment. Nurses are festive beings by nature. We may procrastinate with our own decor, but stay after hours to design snowflakes for patients. Work might be busier than crapola, but we find time to open patient doors if carolers are on site. We have a sense of home that exceeds many disciplines, although our respect in that sphere is gaining.
Do we want to be home for the holidays? Do we yearn for the revelry and silliness (and cookies, let's be real!!) as much as anyone? Indeed we do. But we feel so honored to be soothing patients' brows, we breathe a sigh of grateful relief knowing home and loved ones will wait. We take yet another sip of lousy coffee, gaze at smartphone pictures of family, and hope THIS is the year we get out on time and the roads are clear.
Will we make it home for the holidays? Possibly. Or, we might slide achingly under the covers at 0330, reeking of an evening's worth of GI bleeds. Either way, we know what it is to be blessed, especially as we enjoy a belated hug from family members who have been there, done that for many, many years.
To the vast number of nurses everywhere: be safe, be selfless, make it home.
