Nearing the End of Fall Semester...

Whew. I have many thoughts racing through my head - a common side effect of nursing school I suppose - I will attempt to record some during the break - once I've sorted and reflected a bit.

But for now this is what I want to remember.

Today I watched one of my classmates (and very close friend) TRIUMPH - truly pure joy.

I've written about the grading scale in a previous post - bottom line is that 78% is the minimum for passing. Not a big issue; but the difficulty is compounded when you add the chronic stress, family life, etc. Don't misunderstand me - I think that RNs have to be able to perform well academically - especially when it comes to life and death issues. The problem I see is that certain classes become "weeders" when they are not necessary. I don't know about everyone else, but as a patient, I prefer a caregiver who knows how and when to hold my hand, brush my hair out of my face, to listen to me and to empathize - rather than one who can define Heritage Consistency or read an instructor's mind when taking an exam by choosing the BEST answer when all four provided answer choices are arguably correct.

My friend has been going to school for five years - taking a class at a time and re-taking a few important ones in the process. I have watched her show her dedication and true grit over and over regardless of the challenges she faced. In the nursing program you can fail and repeat ONE class and then it's over - no exceptions. Dip slightly below 78% and you may find yourself researching other career options. I'm not saying everyone can or should be a nurse - but when you know someone who SHOULD it is hard to consider that it may be over for them; especially because of a theory class that has very little practical application in our future careers as caring professionals. I don't think you can teach compassion or empathy - and when you possess these qualities that should be nurtured. So today I celebrate that one of the "good ones" gets to continue - I celebrate answered prayers and will leave you with this...

Spartacus (that's a story for another time!) - today you showed us what you are made of and I am so very proud of you - 96% indeed.