My Creed

    Recently, as many of you know, I contracted West Nile Virus and ended up spending a week in the hospital with meningitis. It was horrible. But God is great and brought me through it. It took about 4 weeks but I was healed and I'm back to normal now. Laying in the hospital, I started to think to myself, "What if I'm one of the 10% that dies from this? I just want to get out of here and have another chance to live this life. I want to take care of my kids, my husband. There is so much left for me to do.”
    As I was looking through old pictures and books recently, I came across something I wrote over 10 years ago while I was working at the VA. I had attended a Stephen Covey seminar and one of the assignments we did was to write our creed. A creed is a statement of beliefs or principles. I want to share what I wrote back then. I still believe all of these things and now that I have this second chance, it holds true even more today.

                                                                        

                                                                          My Creed

I will live each day with the intention that it will only be as great as I make it. To forget the mistakes of my past but also learn from my experiences. I shall fear God and no one else. May I always find what is the truth and avoid the untruths. And remember to have an open heart and mind, for they will lead me to the truth.

I want to indulge my family and friends with all the love I possibly can. They are the treasures of my life I will not take for granted.

In my profession, may I act with compassion, courage and consideration for what is best for my patients and myself.

I will do my best in keeping my principles at the center of my life, value life's experiences and enjoy the ride.