Banana Bag

I feel like I have been hooked up to a BANANA BAG this week. What is a banana bag you ask? It is a bag of IV fluids that contains vitamins and minerals to replenish a deficient body. I know it is only thursday, but I have had such a great day today (and the past few days) that I cannot help but relish.

Monday: I woke up early to drive back to Charlotte for an interview at the YMCA. It went well, and the employer will look for a position for me. She even passed my information on to a bunch of her colleagues to see if they had a spot that was more fitting to my schedule. She then allowed me to take a free spinning class. So much fun! I had two delicious meals, one being Flying Biscuit with a friend, another was homemade indian food from one of my bff's new boy friends. He has made a good impression on me... Or my stomach at least. I hung out with my wonderful roommates Kate and Bekah in our BEAUTIFUL NoDa home. I still cannot believe I live in such a place. It blows my mind. I had the best night of sleep I have had in weeks.

Tuesday: Relaxing morning with fresh French pressed coffee from the comforts of my own home and yogurt with blueberries. Yum. Then a run downtown where a homeless man gave me a medal. I chose to believe that it was a kind act that ministered to my character. A man with nothing saw me and was compelled to scrounge the bottoms of his napsack for a keepsake. That is beautiful! The only hang up of the day was that my key to our building didn't work, which just meant I had to go back to visit Bekah at work to get hers. Then I decorated my room with lattice, a window, and the old desk; I am going for a cottage/vintage feel. Bekah came home early from work and we chatted while multi-tasking. We ate leftover indian cuisine for dinner, waited on Kate, and then faced the storm to go to Church. The message spoke to all of us, and we laughed as things said in the sermon paralleled conversations we previously had with one another. I was convicted about areas of pride in my life and how I view "my calling". It was a good reminder that what I do in the future has little relevance to how I live my life now. Life is not about what I can do, but how I respond. Good stuff!

Wednesday: Woke up early to go for a run with my friend Michelle and then came home to make a journal to give to a Raleigh roommate for her trip to Africa. I had lunch with another friend in which I killed some pride. It was a bit scary, but I figured the cost was worth it. Pride has no place here. And guess what? It wasn't bad at all, it was freedom. I drove back to Raleigh and ran some errands. Sarah and her boy friend had made a delicious blueberry cake that I got to taste, and then I went to bed.

Thursday: The BEST day of all. The banana bag of all banana bags. I started my day with some meditation on the fact that I am not defined by what occupation I have, or what role I play, but that it is how I respond. I was given the opportunity to work in the ICU and absolutely loved it! Perhaps it was my outlook, or maybe it really was a good fit. Who knows. When I arrived I went into the break room and listened to discussion. I was told to follow a nurse named Veronica (she is from Nigeria, very cool!), but when the charge nurse announced this at the meeting, Veronica's bulging eyes indicated that no one had informed her about this pairing. I was a bit concerned that it would not be fun or go well, but I was determined to respond out of joy. I asked V about ICU and if her children were going to be nurses and she told me she told them all never to be. I asked why and she said it was because her job was stressful, and that she wasn't paid nearly enough. She said I should continue my education and not stop at being a nurse... that I should be an CRNA (Nurse Anesthetist), or a Nurse Practitioner, or a doctor, but that I should never be a bedside nurse. She told me she didn't like teaching either. All of that was a little discouraging, but I pressed on. There wasn't too much for me to do because ICU nurses only take care of 1-3 patients at a time, enabling the nurse to provide for most of the needs. I decided I was not going to sit around so I started asking everyone on the unit. Slowly, they all started to give me tasks. At 12 I went with V to a meeting and she became more and more open to me. She pulled a seat next to her and included me in conversation. She was nice from the start, but I began to feel more like a welcomed presence instead of a her seeing me as a pesky student. At 1 I had my evaluation with Yolanda, the 5th floor nurse manager, and was very encouraged by that as well. Just like everyone else I meet, she too gave me career advice, telling me to work at the bedside for a few years before trying to specialize or go back to school, and how to make myself marketable. I listened with a grain of salt, because I know I can't take everyone's advice. My favorite part was when she commended my current status. She said that both of the nurses i work with said I was eager to learn and doing very well. She told me that the patients all loved me and one had even talked to her about me and told her things she already knew (probably about how I was a student, etc). So cute! After the meeting I went back to the ICU with even more fuel. I took an initiative and started performing tasks before I was asked. V warmed up to me even more, and began teaching with greater depth. She told me about the patients conditions and encouraged me to think critically. I really liked the ICU and fit in well there. It was clean, organized, quite, and warm :) As a nurse, you have to constantly be thinking and making decisions. Everything isn't black and white. Towards the end of my shift, V was impressed with my observations and gave me a high five. She told me that usually they don't need Nursing Assistants but that I was a huge asset and she wanted to talk to her nurse manager about getting me on board. She told me I was going to be a great nurse. I always thought I would be bored with how much you sit and watch your people in the ICU, but I found it refreshing. My body wasn't dead tired when I got home from work! Instead, my mind felt like it had been stimulated. I also wasn't exhausted from dealing with people. I got to talk to my patients a little bit, but it wasn't a constant bombardment of emotional support, anger-determent, or mere entertainment. I also go to practice my spanish today with one of the new admissions. I was very surprised by how much I remembered from so long ago. It was so much fun!