What? First Semester of Nursing School is already over?!

By: Jae Kook Lim, University of Central Florida

THE TITLE SAYS IT ALL!! Last week, I finished my very first semester of Nursing school. I am still in disbelief that it has gone by so fast. Seems like yesterday, I was just attending the nursing orientation with 120 strangers. BUT, it’s over. My peers and I have finished all of our check-offs for the requirement. Those have got to be one of the most stressful things to do; not because of every step needed to be memorized but more of the fact that we were given only two tries to do it. I know couple peers from the past who were held back because of these check offs. Although I was nervous beyond anything, I told myself that everything was okay. These check offs are there to ensure that the future nurses know what they are doing, not to fail people purposely. Honestly, who wants to have an incompetent nurse taking care of them? I wouldn’t!

So, the time gap from when I submitted from first blog to this blog: I have so much to cover. To start off, it was Finals week so everyone was stressed out of their minds. I sure was! Everyday starting in November 27^th up until December 9^th, I studied roughly 6 hours a day for my exams. I lost count how many times I went to the library, too. Throughout this rough period, I couldn’t help but laugh. Why? I saw majority of classmates at the library and gave me an expression that spoke of despair, fear, and anxiety. It was comical to see that because we were all in the same position. Any time I saw one of my peers, I gave them a pep talk. Sure, Finals can be scary but they are testaments to see how much you have really learned, which is why I was not so afraid going into Finals as I used to be.

Now that the purgatory week was over, I came home, which is in down south, to help my mom pack up the remaining stuff in our house. My parents have decided to move to Virginia because of new job opportunities; my dad already moved there this August and my mom will be joining him in next March. The house has never felt so empty before; it is a strange feeling. It has been a decade since moving here but to say that I won’t be living here got me really sad. But there was a positive outlook once I thought about it more: this could open up new opportunities for me in the future. Maybe I wasn’t meant to be down here after finishing nursing school. Maybe I was meant to be in Virginia or somewhere up in the north to achieve my ultimate goal. ;-)

Quote for the future students: Take on the exams as if you were testing yourself! Don’t think the instructors are testing you. YOU are testing YOURSELF!