Skimming the Surface

It doesn't feel so long ago when my cohort and I barely began our journey into this first semester. I had no idea what to expect and from that point, I knew this adventure would not be anything close to normal. From the beginning, I felt like I had been on a wild roller coaster ride into a dark abyss. Ever since, me and many others began learning a new culture that is known as the "nursing program." And now coming towards the end of the semester, I feel that I am riding that roller coaster towards the light at the end of the tunnel. As of right now, it is a speck, but it is still a glimmer of hope, so in about five more semesters we will all burst out of the tunnel and will be prepared to take on the world.

Beginning the semester with orientation, I felt like a lost puppy roaming the unknown neighborhood, but in my case, there were plenty of other "dogs" to help me along the way. The professors here are more than willing to guide me onto the righteous path of becoming a Registered Nurse, and I don't think I can ever give enough praise and thanks because they are doing something more for me than just teaching, they are building a future for me. A quote that can relate to this situation goes by, "Give a man a fish, he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he will set for life" and I believe the professors are teaching me how to fish. From just lecturing classes to instructing me how to successfully insert an NG tube, these professors can do it all. I would not have asked for any other mentors.

Another great thing about this program is that I am not riding this "roller coaster" alone. The other students in my cohort have been the most pleasant people to be around. I have developed a relationship with most other  nursing students and I have never been able to do that anywhere before. I think that we all may be close since we all are experiencing the life of a CBU nursing student. Whether it's studying for tests, writing theory papers, or eating dinner together, we all are in this aiming for one goal: to get to the light at the end of the tunnel. Since we all aim for one thing, I have made some great friends here even though most of them are guys but I guess that's only natural. It feels like I have known these friends for years and I enjoy being around them since they feel my struggle and have the same priorities as I do. I hope for years to come, that they will remain the close friends that they are, and I even hope that I make even more friends so that I am blessed with the gift of being able to enjoy the presence of others.

And lastly, I enjoy the teachings of this program since I can use them in almost every day activities. When I was told that I would open hamburger wrappers in a sterile manner, I didn't believe it, but now I find that I do that without even thinking about it. The program has grown on me so much that I wash my hands after entering or leaving a room. It even affected the way I converse with others because I am always trying to implement "True Presence." I often find that many people come to me to explain what their symptoms mean, and I of course say that I am not a doctor. The nursing program has affected me in every way that I even asses the situations of my day. I plan, I diagnose, and I evaluate everyone and everything. This new culture I entered has trained me to do things I would have thought of doing, but I am proud of being able to participate in the daily activities of the nursing life.

After almost being done with one full semester, I understand that this is only the beginning. We all have much more to learn and understand, and I can proudly say that I am eager to learn everything the nursing program has to offer. I am eager to learn because I have these experience professors, friends, and skills that will guide me along the way, and because of them I don't feel as lost as I have before. I feel very refreshed in the sense that my life has taken a different route, much different than before, and I embrace this change with open arms since I know that God has blessed me with a wonderful life, an amazing group of friends, and an excellent program. For now, I know that I am just skimming the surface of the program, and that there is much more to come.
                                      

Gobble Gobble

Thanksgiving is a time of embracing the warm feeling love from family and eating tons of delicious food. Moist, warm turkey, buttery mashed potatoes, creamy mac and cheese, sweet cranberries, and fresh out of the oven apple pie all make my mouth water just thinking about it, and sharing food along with my loving family makes Thanksgiving such a grand holiday. There is just one thing though, I am in the Nursing program now which means I will be busy with homework and projects before, during, and after Thanksgiving break. It is not a bad thing, but it is also not a good thing. I won't be able to enjoy my friends and family as much since I will be more worried about my grade rather than eating delicious turkey.




I think that what I am planning to do is to finish all of my homework the weekend before Thanksgiving break and maybe on that Monday as well. I plan on doing that so I can focus my time on my friends and family since I feel I have neglected them ever since the nursing program started. My friends always ask me when I can come visit them and I say whenever I don't have work that weekend which feels like never. It will definitely be hard to focus on just my homework since I will be around my family during the holiday week. I love spending time with my family doing events such as holiday shopping and preparing food. It is even harder with my friends around as well because they love hanging out doing movie nights and staying up late doing nonsense. So, what I have to do is lock myself in my room all weekend with few distractions so I can complete my work to successful spend time with my family and friends. I will have a difficult time doing so, but I know it will be worth every single moment. The Nursing program is such a blessing upon my life and I thank God everyday for it, and I give thanks to every one involved with making my life just a tad bit better.

Skid Row Experience

This past Thursday was a real eye opener to what our world can contain. I know that I hear the word "homeless" or "poor" on television and I think nothing of it, but when we visited downtown Los Angeles I felt my world view open. I realized that not everything is about me and who ever is in my life. There are many other people in this world that need help with obtaining the simplest yet necessary things in life.

The Fred Jordan Mission put on a "Back to School" event to help needy children receive necessary items to be successful in school such as school clothes, shoes, backpacks, toothbrushes, haircuts, and food. Hundreds, maybe thousands of people lined up and camped out a certain street in downtown L.A. just to be one the many people who received back to school items. Smiling children and worried adults filled the lines, just waiting to get a chance to enter the section of booths. It was an exciting day to see many young children be excited in getting an early Christmas. I clearly forgotten how much children love to get gifts, and to get a whole backpack full of miscellaneous items was amazing to them, since some of these students never owned more than a pair of shoes. They were happy, and so was I.

I was not necessarily handing out important items such as shoes or toothbrushes, but I was handing out things that children love most, candy and stickers! I must have had amnesia or something because I forgot how excited children get over stickers. Once I offered them a sticker, their faces immediately brightened and they soon looked around our collection of Christian stickers and chose whichever sticker they thought was the coolest. The children would stick out their arms allowing me to put the sticker on their hands and their only response was "thank you" which made me smile. The older children mostly chose stickers that had a message such as "hope", "love", or "peace" and the younger children chose stickers of items such as crosses or anchors. The teenagers just smiled and laughed, declining my offer of stickers which I guess is normal now a days. Just seeing those innocent young smiles on children while they received stickers made my whole experience since I know I had brightened that child's life just for a brief moment. I look forward to helping out in this event next year, if my cohort is allowed, and I would not hesitate to help out the needy.

Procrastination

It is so easy to put off an assignment that might be due next week, the next day, or even the next hour. I found myself in the position where my work was not as good as it could have been if I had not been a victim of procrastination. I think it is safe to assume that I am not the only person in the world who found themselves in that predicament. Something as simple as sleeping or watching television instead of doing homework or assignments can result in that piece of working dropping one whole letter grade. It is not that hard to deny procrastination, all one has to do is say "no" to that sort of temptation.

A few ways I can beat procrastination are being organized, planning, and self motivation. I noticed that if i have a visual of all of my assignments on a white board or sticky notes that I can concentrate on one piece of work instead of filling my thoughts on what other homework I have. As soon as that assignment is complete, I cross it off my whiteboard or notes, and then continue on with other work I have to do. Planning also kills the habit of procrastinating. Writing down a "plan of attack" for the day helps me go out about doing my homework from hour to hour. I wouldn't want to be a chicken running around with his head cut off, scurrying to complete assignments. And last, self motivation can inspire myself to do my work at a great pace with excellent effort. When procrastination crosses my mind, I imagine what I would do after the assignment is completed, so pretty much I am giving myself an incentive such as allowing myself to eat ice cream or watch a few minutes of television. Little things such as writing out assignments on paper, planning when to do homework, and offering a reward to yourself can lead to being more productive towards schoolwork.