22 children adopted or fostered by Carl and Sherry Scott

Hmm, how ironic that I've chosen a profession as a health care provider.

My Aparents decided Nursing was the profession for me.  It was practical, it was well-paying, and it was the sort of job I could do at night, while my children were asleep or during the day while they were at school.  I had no desire to become a nurse.  None.  I hated many of the classes, and yet some really did fascinated me.  When it came to direct patient-care, we were taught the right way and the wrong way of doing something.  I liked this approach because I was given reasons and rationales behind the dos and don'ts of certain actions and it went well-beyond the typical "You do it because I told you to do it" attitude I got at home.

I remember that first semester, sitting far away from everyone else, and just taking it all in.  I thought I was the only one with a very dark and hidden past.  I thought I was the only one living this horrible charade.   It took well over a year before I allowed myself to become close to anyone within my class.  Once I did, I realized just how many were just like me -- wounded souls who were left behind to suffer alone, and forced to make the best of a really crappy life-situation.  Once we graduated and became working RN's, it was very interesting to see who saw nursing as a thankless (yet well-paying) job, and who saw nursing as a strange little spiritual awakening and calling.  I know for myself, every time I went into a very sick patient's room, I was driven to give some sick stranger all that I could because I KNEW how it felt to sit, wait, and not receive.  I became very proud of my work because I knew what I was doing and I knew I was very friendly and kind.  I knew I was liked and respected and valued by those who needed a person who was reliable and trustworthy.  That meant the world to me.

I left my well-paying nursing job so I could stay home and raise my children.  I got a lot of grief for quitting.  I got many speeches about how important it was to have "extra money".  I got all sorts of warnings that my time-off should not last very long.  No one understood why I HAD to leave... I left because I didn't want my job as mom to be replaced.  I left because I wanted my children to never doubt the dedication of a good mommy.  I left because I could not leave my children alone... with a babysitter or family member.  [How could I possibly do to them what was done to me?!?!?  What sort of mother would I be?!?!?]

The irony for me was this:  I never wanted to go to Nursing School or become a nurse.  I was forced to go because it's what my Aparents wanted for me... "job security".  However, because of that short-lived life experience, I learned how to parent and as such, I was able to become the mommy I never had or knew.