The "F" Word - Flexible

"BE FLEXIBLE!"...the mantra to attend nursing school with and skidding into the last day of the first week, I am astounded at the tenacity of the roadies to persevere in optimism. I am afraid of the potential we all have to succumb to fatigue, pressure and the ever looming prospect of getting by, however, we are all learning the fine art of flexibility. This is the first fruit of patience and understanding and maybe even fortitude. It looks like it hurts a little (don't you think?)

We were able to talk about this briefly yesterday with our managing director, who is refreshingly real as an Academic. She assured us that while it would be really nice to achieve the A's we were accustomed to receiving in our prior coursework, don't expect the same results in nursing (as it is it's own special beast). She also said we'd burn out fast and furious (this should be noted for future reference- note to self: "Avoid the pitfalls of burn-out, do you really want to be angry & bitter?" No it makes strange bedfellows with resentment and depression. Best coping mechanism...organization and communication (even when you've made a mistake). Also, trying your best is sometimes good enough, even when you've studied all night and missed points anyway. Learning is an imperfect, dynamic and constant process. Go with it.

Professionally speaking, the word collaboration has come up more than once this week. As a student nurse, I am grateful to see that while my instructors encourage flexibility for us as we cope with the challenges of an accelerated program, I also have seen concrete examples this week of how they mirrored by example when we've asked it from them. That's an F word, I can live with.