https://soundcloud.com/abby-wescott-417465924/marijuana-talk

To the nutcracker, my mom always put out for Christmas when my brother and I were young. My mom collected nutcrackers, and this was the biggest one yet that she had bought. We got the nutcracker at the same time I got my tree topper angel. I remember my mom told me I could pick out an angel for the top of the tree that year and we would alternate from my angel to hers every Christmas. My mom loved going to the Christmas Tree Shop, we would go there every time we were in town to go grocery shopping. As for the Grinch and Max, I’m not sure where my mom got those, but I remember my mom would always put the Grinch and Max up on their fireplace mantel. Looking at the nutcracker, the tree topper, and the Grinch and Max the memories come rushing. I remember the smell of the cinnamon rolls that we would only eat on Christmas morning. Along with the cinnamon smell also was the smell of the hot coffee my parents would drink every morning.

The coffee mug is my best friend and I with pictures from times when we were in high school till now. We have been best friends for 13 years; she is one of the best people I could have in my life. Looking at this coffee mug I have a smile on my face, we both love coffee and we both have an obsession with Dunkin Donuts. She has her own life, with her own family but we always make time for each other to talk about what’s going on.

Looking at these five items, it’s my childhood and good times. I know I will always and forever have them with me. I look at them I will smile and be grateful for the memories.

I was only a licensed nursing assistant for a few months, and I absolutely loved it. Yes, it came with some jobs that I did not enjoy but I remembered that these people need help, and they can no longer do it themselves. I remember getting my list of residents for the night, it was three o’clock and I needed to get them ready for dinner. I remember I had Eve on my list, she was dying, her family was in the room with her every day cracking jokes with her, listening to her favorite music, and trying to get her to drink. She was too stubborn to drink anything or eat anything. Eve was a hundred and one years old and you could tell she had had enough. After I got all my residents ready for dinner, I went and checked on Eve. Every hour I had to go make sure she was comfortable, check her vitals, and make sure her family was doing okay. Eve grunted and moaned and wanted nothing to do with me, you could tell she was in pain. As I checked her vitals, I looked over to see how her family was doing and they were all sitting there joking around like nothing was going on. Her oxygen level was at 55%. If you have a normal oxygen level, it’s above 90%.

Days and days went by, Eve’s family still in the small room listening to her favorite music, making sure that she was okay, as they talk about memory lane. Eve’s oxygen was getting lower and lower. I remember walking onto the nurse’s floor at three o’clock when my shift started. The floor was a dark green carpet with stains from God knows what, you could smell the kitchen making hotdogs and fries for dinner. There were other residents up and ready to go with their day. As I walk to the nurse’s desk, I see that a nurse had come back from a vacation. I told her that Eve was not doing well and that she might be going as soon as tonight. As I walk down the dark green carpet hallway behind the nurse she stopped and turned to me. She asked for me and the other nursing assistant to stay in the hallway. She turned and knocked on the big tan wooden door, that was open a crack. She walks into Eve’s room. As I investigate the room, I looked at Eve, her pearly white hair shined in the light above her bed, her eyes were closed with a thousand rainbow blankets on her to keep her warm, and the sound of jazz music in the background. The nurse told Eve she was in the room, as Eve opens her eyes she lit up like a Christmas tree. The family has not seen her look so happy in a while. The nurse kneels to Eve’s level and tells her it’s okay to go, that she will be safe and warm, and that there’s nothing to worry about. The nurse held Eve’s hand and said to her, “I will be right here.”. The nurse kept talking to Eve, singing to her, and within five minutes, Eve took her last breath. The timing was amazing, I think Eve was waiting for this nurse to come back to say goodbye to her. Eve wanted to hear the nurse’s voice one last time. The last scene we lose when we are passing away is our hearing, I think Eve wanted to hear the nurse sing to her one last time before falling into a deep sleep.

It's great to see that you have grown as a person! It's always nice to find those true friends that bring out the best in you.

After being alone for four years I finally met my person on E harmony. He is the best thing that I could have ever imagined and more. He is everything that I have been looking for, and the best part about him is that I can be myself. I was never allowed to be myself in my last relationship. But, with this man he taught me how to be strong, to stand up for myself, and pushed me to become a better me. I am a better person from all the things that have happened to me, yes a lot was not good but I am a stronger woman because of it.

I feel like a lot of women and men go through some type of domestic abuse and they do not know how to get out by themselves. I like to share my experience with people because I feel like it gives them hope about getting out or they already went through it so they want to tell their story as well. I feel like it is important to communicate with each other on topics like this. Not a lot of people tell them that are in a house where they get beat every day, they keep it a secret. I know from experience why. With open communication and having a safe space to talk about it I feel like people should open up and tell us their stories so we can grow together.

#DSHCCSP22