It’s Thursday. I’ve been assigned to OR 3 with one of my favorite scrub techs. It will be a tough day and I’m relieved to have her.

Thursday in my OR is the day our OB/GYN service has block time to schedule D&Es. To the non-medical personnel out there — abortions. Room 3 is their room. I’m their circulating nurse for the duration.

On this Thursday — we have four cases scheduled and a ‘hold’ spot for the end of the day in case one of their partners sees someone in clinic and there is an emergency. …

As a former OR nurse, I just don’t see what the big deal is. I worked 40+ hours a week, in a mask. For most of my nursing career. With asthma.

It’s not like anyone is taking away our guns. Goddess Forbid!

I know for a fact masks work to prevent the transmission of our germs from one being to another. That’s why we wear them in operating rooms. Everywhere. Globally. Because they work.

We wear masks to protect our patients. For many days before any symptoms emerge— we are all carriers. Of anything we might ‘catch’. From the flu…

It’s not about vengeance after all

When I started looking deeper into the philosophies behind my yoga and meditation practice, I learned about Karma. The real and true meaning of the energy.

Karma is defined by Dictonary.com as:

the sum of a person’s actions in this and previous states of existence, viewed as deciding their fate in future existences. Destiny or fate, following as effect from cause.

Karma can be immediate or take a long time to percolate. However, it is always neutral — just as destiny is neither good nor evil. It simply is. Karma doesn’t seek justice on…

Humans are pack animals. We seek each other out for safety, companionship, comfort. We share resources and build communities. We hold each other up.

We are connected.

In the last week or so — I have been a bystander as several of my friends have lost loved ones. Their pain is palatable even to me — someone who lays no claim to empathy. All I can do is bear witness to their grief.

Whenever Azrael comes calling — the Humans left behind suffer. My BFF and I have been discussing the circumstances around Death. Is it a better, kinder circumstance…

After over a year of isolation, virtual classrooms, and living with The Glitter — The Magical Creatures are emerging back into their social lives. Soccer, lacrosse, and swim teams brought new friends into their sphere of existence. Old friends came for play dates in a carefully orchestrated dance between parents as everyone adjusts back to a world that is safer for their loved ones.

The change in my granddaughters’ day-to-day joy has increased exponentially as they are allowed to interact with their peers. Kids understand instinctively that we need A Tribe.

And so — we follow their lead. Slowly —…

It didn’t happen suddenly. I just recently noticed this gentle creep away from my previous extremely colorful use of All. The. Things. Four-lettered.

I was an OR nurse for much of my career. Swearing well enough to make a sailor blush was part of the job. And I was very, very good at my job. But then, right before the pandemic, I took a position as a case manager. My patients were awake so my tendency towards cussing — at least during business hours — was greatly reduced.

However, my friends were all still working OR nurses. Conversations with them…

I came home several days early from The Great East Coast Friends & Family tour. The Universe spoke and I listened. Because I have found when the improbable happens — when massive obstacles are placed in your path — you are on the wrong path.

In July, I traveled for twenty-one days. I covered nearly 2000 miles and was physically IN eleven different states and The District Of Columbia. I was nearly at the end of my travels when I was exposed to COVID.

Many of you might not be surprised because that’s a lot of ground to cover and…

Loss: Prompt

The only sure thing in Life is change. And change is always neutral — how we perceive the change is what determines if a situation is a loss or a reward. Even Death — the biggest change of all — can, at times, seem a blessing — an end to earthly suffering and pain.

Our knowledge of human mortality drives so much of our behaviors. We can be awash in denial and live a completely self-destructive existence. Or alternatively, we can drown in anxiety and become paralyzed. …