yesterday afternoon 40 or so beautiful young women and one young man were pinned with twu's nursing school pin. it is always a pleasure to watch this ceremony as students and faculty recount the last four years. it is amazing to think that i have had even a small part in these people becoming who they are and what kind of nurses they are. as i watched the ceremony i took in some of the people in the audience. there was one young couple there to see their niece graduate. they have a son who is chronically ill and my friend cares for him in his home a few days a week. as i watched them it was amazing to think how they have been touched by the role of the nurse. i'm sure they carry around both positive and negative memories...but the power of a nurse is incredible.
after the ceremony my friend and i went to have coffee with another amazing couple. they have experienced more stress in their family than most people could handle. they talked a little about their son who died 9 years ago at the age of four. because i'm an icu nurse the dad was telling me about the most profound icu experience he had. he said, 'my son was so sick, i just put my head down and cried and the nurse came over put her hand on my shoulder and asked if i was okay.' out of all the experiences this is what he remembered. the touch and kind word of a complete stranger.
do we even comprehend how one word or action or lack thereof can impact a life? i don't think this applies just to nurses; i think we can all profoundly impact people everyday. it just takes opening our eyes and taking a risk and speaking words that may make us a little vulnerable. but the life it can bring to another soul is worth more than what it will cost us in the long run.
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