Zig-Zags

A group of us were talking with one of our previous professors earlier this afternoon at the pinning ceremony for the graduating nursing students. He's an amazing professor, and a lot of us look up to him. He told us of a story he had been told by another much-respected individual in the nursing profession...

We all live in this strange (but fascinating) zig-zag pattern. We have ups, and we have downs. Zigs, and zags.

We were told that it's important to have a safety net around us, so our zags don't end up below the previous zig. (Am I making any sense?) It's so important to keep living in an upwards pattern. Our professor said to zig and zag in a way so that when we're at the top, we can look back and say "How the hell did I get up here?"

What is your safety net? Mine is my family, my boyfriend, my cats, my friends and my fellow nursing students. I also have my spirituality, my joy in my work, and the deep-seated knowledge that every day is a new opportunity.

I used to zag a lot. It seemed, some days, that I would zag forever and that there was no bottom to hit. I decided one day that I really needed to zig... this zagging thing was really getting old! I zigged away, going back to school and really developing myself into the person I saw myself as becoming. There have been some zags thrown in there from time to time, just to keep it interesting, but I'm zigging at a right pace right now, thanks to my confidence and my safety net. I love my safety net. It's always there when a zag is on the horizon, threatening my zigginess.

I'm consistently getting up there in levels that I never dreamed that I would reach. I'm determined to get to the top and look back, and say "How the hell did I get this high!?" Know what? I'm glad I'm not afraid of heights, because I'm already pretty high up here. I should have brought a flag or something.

Go for it. Zig. You can do it.