Living out dreams –it’s more than the OlympicsLike you, I watched the Olympics with great interest and anticipation as Michael Phelps pulled it off -8 gold medals– making history and proving to the whole world that anything is possible. Overcoming great personal obstacles, many others are also living out their dreams in Beijing – for some, just getting to Beijing and qualifying for the competition is the realization of their dream. For others, the dream is to break a world record and/or win a medal. Even their parents and coaches are living their dream of sitting in the stands in Beijing and cheering their child on to victory. We eagerly listen to endless interviews with the athletes representing us in the 2008 Games as they share their dreams retrospectively. On this first day of school in Lincoln, NE. I am thinking about all of the children, young adults and even older folks who are taking another step forward toward the realization of their academic dreams. My daughter, Mary Ellen, just announced that she has secured an internship with a wild life rescue operation in South Florida – close to the Everglades- and will soon be moving to Naples, Florida. This is a dream she has nurtured for quite some time. I think it is essential that we all dream dreams, share them with others, live them out and then dream the next one. This amplifies global positivity and ultimately creates a better life for everyone. All this talk of dreams and the Martha Stewart website: Dreamers into Doers, prompted me to write an essay this month – I call it Trilogy of Dreams. If you’ve got a minute….let me share it.Trilogy of Dreams In the afternoon of my career, I am focused upon #3 of my trilogy of dreams. Dream #1 (conceived at age 5) was to become a nurse – to serve humanity in their struggles with life, death and illness. This dream became a reality when I graduated from nursing school and became a registered nurse. My career in nursing includes a variety of stimulating jobs, roles and challenges, dotted with the birth of two daughters, geographic relocations and the blessings of a good life. My career settled into the area of hospital infection prevention and control. Dream #2 (conceived at age 15) – to be a medical missionary – was fulfilled in 1999 when I quit my job as a nurse consultant and went to Liberia, West Africa to reopen a school of nursing which had been destroyed by civil war. After that year in Africa, I became an international nurse consultant with a renewed passion for infection prevention. Out of some impatience and frustration in my attempts to control infections in hospitals, dream #3 surfaced (at age 50) and it translated into the mission of my new business, nanobugs, inc: to entertain and educate people of all ages about practical microbiology for the purpose of infection prevention. Investing all my personal resources and retirement savings into this business, I have joyously created cartoon microbes called “nanobugs” to capture the attention of people of all ages and stimulate their interest in learning about infection prevention. I have created a unique website and established an NGO in Liberia to carry out this global mission. My trilogy of dreams has fueled a career full of passion and creativity and a future that sparkles with ideas and excitement. Nancy J. Haberstich RN MS CIC
This entry was posted on August 20th, 2008 at 12:00 am. RSS
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