Tag Archives: friendship

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Stories From Nursing School

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Meeting My Best Friend

An event occurred yesterday which triggered all sorts of memories about nursing school so I decided to do a series of blogs about my adventures in nursing school. Some of them are just plain funny now but were not at the time. Some of them will reflect the nursing culture of the time and some can be used in current life. I see my best friend from nursing school, Gena at least four to six times a year. She always says to me I don’t know how you remember this stuff. Yet I cannot remember what happened yesterday. I have been told many times I should write a book. I find that way too overwhelming, plus I cannot spell and I have syntax issues so my legacy will be my blog.

So it was April or May of 1985 and I had been accepted into Lutheran School of Nursing. I had toured the dorm and the school. I had a friend who was attending at the time as well. However, that year Lutheran decided they would not accept any financial aid. This was a huge roadblock for me, as I qualified for financial aid and planned to use it. So I found myself scrambling for another nursing school. I do not remember how I found out about Deaconess College of Nursing but I applied and was accepted. I remember meeting with the lady that would be my pediatric rotation instructor. I should have ran out right then but then I wouldn’t have all these stories to tell.

Although Deaconess was thirty minutes from my house, I planned to live on campus. I did not have a car so commuting was not an option. I remember specifically requesting a roommate that did not smoke. Yes back in those days we put smokers together in hospital rooms so they could smoke. Anyway my roommates name was Kathy and although she did smoke we lived together through first semester of second year until she had to commute to save on tuition. Sadly I lost touch with her shortly after graduation but have thought of her many times over the years.

That first night the boys had a party. Oh I digress. The male nurses had their own house about two blocks away. They were not allowed to live in the girl dorms and all males had to be signed in and out. Also all males had to leave by ten pm. If you were caught with a boy overnight you were expelled from nursing school. I am sure a couple girls pulled it off but I was such a rule follower there was no way I would ever attempt that. So at this lame party I would meet Gena and Leah. They both lived on my floor as well. St. Elmo’s Fire had come out that summer and Gena reminded me of Mare Winningham. We became instant friends.

School would start the next day in which anything lower than a seventy-six percent was a fail. I just knew every single day for three years that I was going to fail out. So much pressure and it hasn’t changed much over the past thirty-five years. Of course I did not ever fail a class and actually never made less than a B. I must say my self confidence has not improved much over the years.

Mole Moral ~ Last minute change led to an incredible friendship.

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Once A Dork

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It was thirty-nine years ago this week that I first met Gary Lindsay. You see I was a sophomore in high school and our band director Mr. Butler sent a note home stating Fox High School would be hosting an all boy marching band from Johannesburg South Africa and he was looking for host families. Of course I immediately asked my mother if we could host one and she said yes. I knew this would be one of those once in a life time moments but I had no idea at the time how much this one moment would change the course of my life.

I remember telling my mother I hope we get a drummer. The boys either played trumpet or drums. I’m not sure why I wanted a drummer but we got a trumpet player named Gary. If I remember correctly their flight was late getting in so by the time they arrived at the school it was ten at night. Gary was assigned to the Carty girls and I swear we didn’t even make it home before we started fighting like brother and sister.

They were with us for two weeks and it really was an incredible time. Their band was amazing and for the longest time we had a recording of them and also of our band on a vcr tape. Someone broke into our house and stole it with some other stuff. I’m sure they thought it was a sex tape and attempted to watch it and were sorely disappointed. By the time they had left some of the American parents had gotten together and wanted the Fox marching band to go to South Africa. So plans were made and fundraising began and I went to South Africa the following August. I spent the first half of that trip with Gary and his family and the second half with Anton and his family.

After that trip we kept in touch with letters that would take close to three weeks to arrive once sent. Oh the horrors as I can post this blog and within seconds everyone in South Africa could read it. Gary graduated from hotel school having studied hotel management but then joined Covenant Players which is a missionary based theater company that has troops in thirty countries. I believe this is where he met Heidi who eventually became his wife. They then came to America with Covenant Players where they worked on the east coast. However headquarters was located on the West Coast so every summer they had to drive across the entire United States and back. They spent their first Christmas in America with my family. Gary and Heidi were also in town when I gave birth to Kayla. It was always such an exciting time when Gary and Heidi were coming.

They eventually settled down out on the east coast and Gary started working in children’s ministry. They had a couple of kids and have lived in Texas, California and Washington. When Emily took her first travel job as a brand new physical therapist she was close to where Gary and Heidi were living and spent her first Christmas away from home with them. So Christmas came full circle.

Gary and Heidi are two of the most amazing, fun, and free spirited people I’m close with. Brian and I wanted them to raise our kids if we both should die. I can’t tell you how many times they asked if we would just die so they could live with Gary and Heidi. With Allyson being twenty now they escaped the nightmare of life with moles except on vacation.

Im pretty sure I started calling Gary a dork that first night we met. I spent the past four days with him and forgot to say it so I decided a special blog was in order. What a wonderful friend. I’m so thankful the school that was suppose to host them all those years ago backed out and that the band teacher and my mom said yes. Such a life long blessing.

Mole Moral~Once a dork, always a dork!