“I felt stupid because no matter how much I tried, I couldn’t stop. I would spend an hour straightening my shoes, trying to get them ‘just right.’ My dad had to sleep on the floor next to my bed and I had to wear adult diapers. I was left with my self-esteem in shatters. I believed I was a naughty kid.”
“I have been given the gift of time amidst all this and I need to appreciate it, embrace it and be thankful, even when I’m scared. I wondered what it would be like to give 100% of myself to just my family. An opportunity that seemed so unrealistic… until suddenly, it wasn’t.”
“Shortly after the move, our worst nightmare came true. In the car, I noticed he was acting weird. My son was placed on a stretcher with a neck brace, while screaming and crying like I’d never seen him before. I was helpless and hysterical.”
“I hadn’t left our property for over a week. I applied a full face of makeup to go for a walk in the cemetery. I didn’t plan to see a living soul there. My heart leapt! There it was. It felt like genuine joy. For many, it will be life changing. And it’s so scary.”
“One patient had thrown his shoe at the closed glass door to get our attention. I picked up the call light, reassessed their vitals, and they were comfortable. I’m having a difficult time wrapping my head around the fact that patient was TALKING to me and LESS THAN 30 minutes later this patient was DEAD!”
“When I was a kid, it was clear parents expected us kids to ‘behave.’ Some days are super hard. I’m going to hold onto this moment to remind me of how easy some days can be, too.”
“The call came just like it does in the movies. I sat in a rocking chair in her room and slid onto the floor as I heard the doctor speak. I stared at this little play clock. I can still see it so vividly — its tiny yellow hands stood still on its pink face. Time seemed to freeze in those moments. I would remember it as the day our life stopped.”
“We’d worked so hard to get here to just go into labor now. It didn’t seem fair. I kept looking over at Ry for reassurance. Inside, I was freaking out. In my blind ignorance, I was telling myself this is something that shouldn’t be happening to us. ‘If they make it, it is because their trial has made them stronger.'”
“I burst into the tears during that scene and immediately excused myself to get more popcorn. I would give my two cents on Joe’s response to a text or an e-mail. Joe and I would end up fighting about a conflict that wasn’t between us to begin with! In the words of my dear friend Elsa… ‘Let it GO!’”
“I married someone who doesn’t make me feel ‘less than’ because he makes more money than me. Marry the kind of guy you want your daughters to one day date.”
