Something To Be Thankful For

**VivaLasViejas**, ASN, RN

This one was inspired by a little game that one of my co-workers started on facebook a couple of weeks ago as a lead-in to Thanksgiving Day. It's actually rather addictive; in fact, some of us have been posting each day about something we are thankful for, even if it's as mundane as food and shelter, or as exotic as one's recent missionary trip to Africa.

Things I Feel Incredibly Blessed To Have:

1) I'm thankful for my job.

While some may consider a humble LTC floor-nursing position a huge step down on a career continuum that had been headed skyward, I see it as a refuge from the 24/7 responsibility and joy-killing stress of nursing management. I am honored to have been given the opportunity to regain my technical skills, and to have earned the respect of my co-workers and the affection of my residents. I'm also eternally grateful for the chance to prove to myself, if to no one else, that I don't have to continually strive for bigger and better in order to be a worthwhile person.

2) I'm thankful for my co-workers, including my son.

My son works twice as hard as I do and don't make anywhere near as much money. These folks bust their chops every single day getting peed on, pooped on, hit, bitten, kicked, cussed out, and generally treated like the stuff people scrape off the bottom of their shoes........all for ten bucks an hour and an occasional pat on the back. Like this one.

3) I'm thankful for the chance to be a part of patients' lives.

When I was a child, I never wanted to be an astronaut or a movie star; I wanted to take care of people and "make it all better". That basic desire to help my fellow humans was what was lost in the chase for more money and prestige; now that I've regained it, I never want to be without it again. And even though there are many times when I can't make it all better, there's never a day that I don't feel I make a difference to my residents.

4) I'm thankful for the opportunity to earn enough to take care of my family.

Despite the fact that LTC positions are among the lowest-paying in the profession, there's something to be said for remaining steadily employed.......and in all honesty, we aren't poor either. The food on our table may not be fancy, but it's always enough, and so is the available cash to pay the bills and even have a little left over for fun. That's more than a lot of once-well-off folks can say nowadays.

5) I'm thankful for the good health, and especially the weight loss, that have enabled me to do everything faster and easier over the course of this past year.

I don't remember the last time I was sick, except for a touch of nausea and diarrhea a couple of months ago, and I have more energy now than I did when I was in my 40s. I don't know whether it's eating better or simply having run through most of the circulating infections in my younger days, but I'm telling you, I have the immune system of a Spartan.

6) And yes, as corny as it sounds: I'm thankful for the miracles of modern medicine.

A hundred years ago, my 18-year-old's appendix would've burst and he would more than likely have died from sepsis. Fifty years ago, I would've gotten 'blood poisoning' from the spider bite on my foot and probably lost the entire limb, if not my life. Even twenty-five years ago, the TIA my husband had in the Winter of '05 would have likely been ascribed to a bad migraine and ignored; fortunately, his doctor put him on medicines that have controlled his blood pressure and cost next to nothing, thus delaying---and possibly averting entirely---a more severe cardiovascular event.

These are just a few of the things I'm thankful for this holiday season. Please feel free to add your own......and have a Happy Thanksgiving!