Playing the Hand, You are Dealt - Part 2

Dealt an Inside Straight

Inspired by Lessons of the Cards

Although my extended family set high expectations for their children, undoubtedly, the greatest influence in my educational journey was my Aunt Emma. Born in 1901, she embodied the perseverance of her immigrant family. Along with her younger sisters she completed high school, then teacher’s school. Soon after, Aunt Emma left the Dakota prairies and ventured across country to the big city, Los Angeles, with her dream of becoming a nurse.

Throughout the first half of the twentieth century, nursing had a very negative stigma.  Families were warned to not let their daughters become “those kinds of girls!”  Apparently, the “oldest” female profession—that of attending to all of men’s needs—and the nursing profession were considered to have many similarities.

On the strength of family values and service to others, Aunt Emma left home to pursue her dream. She graduated in 1929 as a Registered Nurse. Later she completed her baccalaureate and master’s degrees. In an era when single women rarely traveled alone, she boarded a steam liner out of New York City bound for London.

While there, Aunt Emma attended missionary training, learning the language and culture of India where she’d been assigned a five-year tour of duty. Shortly thereafter, my aunt followed her “call to service” traveling by train, merchant ship, and camel caravan to a small hospital in Nuzvid. During her tenure there, she established a school of nursing and set standards for local and regional healthcare. 

Over the next several decades she served not only in India, but also in Pakistan, Burma, and Africa. I first met my Aunt Emma when I was eight, and she was fifty-eight! A larger-than-life role model, she brought the world home to the prairies in her steamer trunks. Stories, legends, and dreams of far-away lands were planted deep in my heart. Although Aunt Emma was my strongest influencer toward a career in healthcare, there were other women who also cultivated my desires.

Emma’s cousin Alma, also a registered nurse, served as a missionary to Egypt. She told stories of caring for the royal family in Addis Ababa. My heart thrilled at the prospect of adventure and caring for the needs of others in far-off places. 

Then, there was Darlena, the lovely young nurse who married my favorite cousin Wayne.  Darlena’s uniform was crisp and white. Her white cap with the single black velvet stripe was simply marvelous. I adored everything about her uniform. Most of all, I was enamored by the navy wool cape complete with red satin lining and gold embroidered initials on the inner lapel. I watched with childhood envy as she donned her uniform and set off “for duty!”

At long last I attended my first day of nursing school. We nervously scanned the heap of books that represented so many lessons to learn! My heart beat faster as I was issued a name tag, small bandage scissors, and the blue pin-striped student uniform I would wear for the next four years. Real patients, real surgery, and the potential for developing real expertise in helping people regain their health. Could there be anything more noble or romantic?

After four years of diligence, perseverance, and grit; I was rewarded with a crisp white uniform, white hose, and thick-soled white lace-up shoes. Although the shoes were “flat ugly,” my starched white nurse’s cap with the full black stripe more than made up for them. How grand to recognize that my nurse’s hat was the same style my aunt and cousins had worn.  Recently, while going through a trunk in my mother’s attic, I found Aunt Emma’s cap. A note in her bold handwriting stated, “My Crowning Glory!”

Sadly, though I received my crowning glory, I didn’t get the blue cape of my dreams. It was no longer part of a standard uniform. Ah, but doesn’t change usually bring about both regret and promise? Capes and caps gave way to caps alone. Then those, too, were lost as scrubs came into vogue, but underneath it all—the heart of nursing and caring still persists.

If you enjoyed reading this please leave a comment below! Check out my new book Lessons of the Cards, available on www.HazelCurtis.com and Amazon