Sitting Here Is No Good

I thought this post might be fitting for this time of year.  In working two jobs, I have heard more than enough stress and babble about scheduling and making sure well-deserved time off is actually awarded.  Since one job is at a hospital and the other at a nursing home, both require shifts to be covered 24/7, even on the holidays. So someone is always bound to get the short end of the deal and miss holiday time with loved ones to cover time at work (although hopefully an increased pay rate those days will help soften the blow).

In the midst of all this angst, it is easy to lose sight of why we do these jobs in the first place.  I'll be the first to admit that I did not want to be sitting behind a switchboard on Thanksgiving Day while all my family and friends were gathered 'round the dinner table, preparing to take an epic nap in front of a football game playing on TV.

It probably sounds like I'm building up to go on a "somebody has to do it - if people have to be sick on the holidays, how dare you complain about having to care for them?" rant.  But I'd like to take it one step further, thanks to a conversation I had with a resident, Betsy, a couple weeks ago.  I went in to visit her in her room after one of the aides was done helping Betsy with dinner.  As soon as she left, Betsy told me, "That girl came in here and was complaining about being at work.  Boy, I wish I could be working.  I'd much rather do that than...this.  Sitting here is no good.  Let me tell you, I loved my work. Find work you love to do and don't ever complain about it."

While I don't think Betsy would say to be a workaholic and sacrifice time with your family in an unreasonable manner, I do think she has a point worth sharing.  Most of us tend to look at our "work" as something "to get through," a necessary evil to pay the bills.  We dread waking up on the weekdays and constantly count down towards the weekend.  To a certain extent, this is natural and fine, but it would be a shame to see it go too far.  I know we can't all make a living doing a job we absolutely love and find joy in, but if we could at least learn to appreciate our work I think it might do wonders for our spirit, especially around this time of year when the last thing we want to do is go to the office.

Betsy is 100 years old and sits in a recliner all day looking out a window (if her aide even bothers to pull her chair up far enough so she can actually see out the window that day).  She would trade anything in the world to be able to get up and clean a toilet, or file some papers.  She'll tell you that anything is better than just sitting.  But her hands have shriveled and her eyesight is failing her.  She feels useless.  While we do our best to find activities she is capable of doing that can give her a sense of purpose, we will never be able to protect her from the fact that she can't work like she used to. 

I kind of feel like a brat for preaching about this, especially during a holiday season when it is natural to want time off from work.  Heck, it's even healthy.  But Betsy's words were a slap in the face that I know I needed to hear, so I thought they might somehow, ironically, lift your spirits if you find yourself stuck at work feeling like the holiday cheer is moving on without you.  Try to be thankful that you have a job, a purpose, and that someone, somewhere appreciates what you do, even if you don't see it.

***
Funny Quote of the Day:
Me: Finish this phrase - "Mary had a little lamb..."
George: And the doctor died!
Me: Umm, I don't think we're talking about the same song, George...
George: You think that if Mary had a little lamb the doctor wouldn't drop down dead??

The man has a point.