My journey to nursing school wasn’t necessarily the most straight forward journey out there. Like a few things in life, it came with a few wrong turns, moments of uncertainty, patience, and other bits and pieces.
I have told the beginning and the current pathways of this story numerous times, but I have never gone into the pure detail of it. I myself have never sat down and revisited all the memories of what brought me here today: at 11:41 pm, taking a break from microbiology to write up medication cards, and then taking a break from that to write a post.
To be fair though, fear was a big part of my hesitancy. I was afraid of failure, we all are. In my mind, I had to be a certain way, and I figured that if I chose the easy way out, failure wouldn’t be an option, because I would just automatically succeed. Stupid, I know, but that was how I internalized it. Some would call it laziness and I would not disagree; nothing in life worth having ever comes easily- you have to work to get it and or work to keep it.
At first, my family was, mildly put, unsure- nurses, like teachers in Jamaica and in many other countries are one of the most unappreciated professionals out there. They work and work and work and are looked down upon by society, and even by some doctors. They are underpaid and overworked so to speak, but there are opportunities in nursing. It’s like its own world or something: always room for improvement and change. There is so much to do in nursing, in the medical profession as a whole, so even if today one should start working as one thing, 10 years down the road, if you want a change of scenery within the borders of medicine, you can go right ahead…not many professions have that luxury, though the money, time, and effort to achieve such endeavours can be daunting.
Anyhow, back to the story. My family was uncertain, but little by little, they came around- some faster than others. But then, there was the uncertainty of society: some people seemed genuinely happy, while others would say (paraphrasing of course) “wow, that’s a hard profession, are you sure?" Not to mention the look of genuine horror or disappointment on the faces of a few people, almost as if I had failed them. But, I have come to learn (and I’m still trying to accept) that this is my life, and I will not be able to please everybody. Once I sit and think about it, it’s okay because the only One truly worth pleasing already knew I’d take this path and has been opening the doors for me.
This journey has been a roller coaster and I am glad that I am a part of it. It has taught me numerous things and I am grateful for those who saw that I could be more and pushed me, even if I didn’t appreciate/ see it at the time. I am grateful to those who cheered me on and to those who may think I made mistake, I don’t think I made one. Life is a journey and even while driving we change lanes and make different turns. This is currently my lane and I am happy that I chose it.
That’s it for now. Thanks for stopping by and I hope to see you next time. Until then, Peace be.
~Simply Anna Reece.
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