I am half way through my second night shift in the Emergency Department. It is almost 3:30am and I am having my "dinner". Salad, made with love by my husband, from our vegetable gardens at home. And, some nice pasta, made with love by my doting husband. I am lucky!
The kids are excited as they count down the days to Christmas. We may just have a white Christmas this year the way the weather has been going. It was so cold yesterday, but I won't complain because I like sleeping huddled up under the doona and blankets when it is cold outside.
I have been reading our nursing journal as I was eating my dinner, and I spied the most wonderul article about a colleague of mine named Mary. Mary has not worked with me for a few years and I wondered where she had gone off to quite a number of times and there she was right there in front of me. A full page article about Mary and the projects she is working on. We have the same humour and love of patients and their stories. I am so pleased Mary has found what makes her "complete". I often wonder where I will end up with my nursing too. I love my nursing, I like fast pace. But I also love to have a good old yack to people too and find out about their life story. It is good for the patients to be able to speak of times gone by, about themselves, and it seems to take them away from the place they are in now to speak of other things.
A few months ago a lady came up to the ward I was working on and she was in extreme pain. I was speaking to her and it works out she was a lady who would serve my Nanna tea and scones at a cafeteria in Footscray for many years. She spoke so long to me that by the time we had settled her into the room, she had alot less pain than she previously experienced. So, I think a good old yack can help people break the pain barrier some of the time.
Oh, I have to go, sorry people... my break time is up. As it is 3:45am :)

Mary's website is HERE if you would like to check it out. She is doing some great things and I would wish her well :)