National Nurses Day was observed May 6.
We nurses are very fortunate that we have chosen a profession that will fulfill and enrich our lives.
It will never make us rich, but it will make us proud.
Nursing is not an easy job.
There is little possibility anyone would choose it unless he or she had a love for the profession and a desire to do it well.
These are enlightened times, and our role is varied and expanded, which brings an increased social responsibility.
Nurses are dreamers.
We dream of great discoveries and advancements in medical technology that will enable us to reach more of the ill and suffering, to touch more lives.
Dreams are the seedlings of reality.
We understand that when the smallest segment of life is helped, all life is helped.
Nursing is anchored in love, hope, courage and faith.
Nursing involves the whole patient, body, mind and spirit; it is caring for the patient’s environment, social and spiritual, as well as physical.
The art of nursing should be performed as a privilege, not a duty.
Professionalism can be taught, but motivation and tender, loving care must come from within.
No day administering the needs of others will be spent for naught.
Both the true meaning of nursing and my philosophy of life are what may have been the feelings of Dr. Albert Schweitzer, who believed in love for life and all that lives, and in service with seeds of kindness, which like sun rays are never lost.
Jeanie Bland,
Port Angeles
EDITOR’S NOTE: Bland is a retired registered nurse.