Her name is lost to me, which is not unusual for me, still - this patient taught me so much. I got work as an LPN during my last year of nursing school at a long term care facility, nursing home. She had a diagnosis of History of Schizophrenia. Institutionalized a lot of her life. Lots of defense mechanisms that kept her alive, with some power over her life. A stubborn bullying, not entirely rational, to say the least.
And I had to be her nurse, give her meds, enforce safety rules, protect other patients from her. I was non confrontational, she pushed every fearful button my parents installed. I had to earn her trust, kindly, implacably, honestly. I'll never forget the first time she told one of the other residents they "had to listen to nurse joan." She taught me to be strong and sure, to take no shit, and be worthy of trust. Good practice when I had to stand up to surgeons, when I knew I had the facts on my side, or to be my patients' bulldog.
Everyone has something to teach us. It's up to us to pay enough attention, be open to the lesson. To be always humble. Always teachable.
Learn something this Lent.
Had crepes this evening, for Shrove Tuesday, Mardi Gras. Tomorrow, I may smear some ashes on my forehead, and remind myself of my mortality. We are all ashes, all soil, recycled and recyclable.
5 comments:
Seems to me like we marked Lent when I was a wee lad and my church-going mother was still alive but I didn't recall Shrove Tuesday and had to ask the Almighty Google about it. We have a friend who goes for all of that ritual and she always has a big cheeseburger and fries for lunch on that day. Yesterday she also was going to a pancake dinner in the evening at her church. I'm not a big fan of pancakes so it's just as well that I'm also not religious. We had shrimp cocktails and ham and cheese wraps for dinner.
Cat,
I like the rituals without the religion. Crepes are the best sort of pancake, but that I just started as a tradition this year. Yesterday, to be exact.
I did grow up getting ashes smeared on my forehead, though.
Once, many years ago, I was working for a t.v. station in Bismarck, North Dakota, and the Sports Director, who was an observant (after a fashion) Roman Catholic came in on Ash Wednesday with the forehead smear and I . . . innocently, I swear . . . said, "hey, you got some dirt on your forehead, no, really, here let me wipe it off, etc." He almost decked me before I learned what was going on. Some would tell you I'm a late learner.
I will raise a glass to learning!
Dylan jokes that Ash Wednesday is the day that Jews all over the world get to say, "You missed a spot."
Rou,
Every day.
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