Eating my veggies

I need to eat more vegetables, so this morning I added onions, orange peppers and tomatoes to my scrambled eggs, and then I had a plant-based meal drink.  For lunch, a salad.  Dinner was a healthy version of tamale pie with lots and lots of chopped vegetables, tomatoes, turkey a little cheese and polenta.  The thing is, by starting my morning with vegetables my dietary mindset was changed for the day so that I wanted to keep eating healthy things.  

So it is with God's Word.  If I read The Word in the morning and spend some time meditating and praying, all day I have an eternal mindset and am better prepared for the trials and temptations of the day.

 ¹ Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, ^2 [a]fixing our eyes on Jesus, the ^[b]author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Hebrews 12:1-2

New Beginnings

Last Thursday I emailed my resignation to my boss, his boss, and to HR.  I chose to outline all the reasons I was leaving so that it would be on record with HR.  I have never been so disgruntled as to burn bridges, but after being treated like someone's harlot it was important to me to lay out the facts.  I think my dear HR friend appreciated it, even if my boss, not surprisingly, did not.  The good news is that they let me go on Friday with the 30 days pay for the notice I had given.  Amen.  

As it turns out, they would have let one of our new grads go on Friday, as they did with one of the Occupational Therapists, had I not resigned.  I saved her job...for now.  They are cutting staff.  This is a good thing since they keep making people stay home when the census is low.  

The beautiful thing is that I already have a job lined up, and I have to leave in a few minutes to go do new hire paperwork.  I didn't plan on needing to return to home health, but at least I can practice in a safe, ethical setting and take care of my kids and home more easily.  

So now I go, looking forward to the badly needed extra pay that will come to me this Friday from the old job and to the new things God has ahead that He has orchestrated, as He did this job.  Thank you Jesus!

Crying

Friday, September 9th I was introduced to the new CEO at the rehab hospital where I work.  It feels like I have been crying ever since.  He is evil personified; he is slick, smooth, and tries to act folksy while cutting employee paid time off (holiday, vacation, and sick time all in one) from 26 days to 20 days per year and telling us we have to do better at making our customers happy while he cuts staff.  He's a shark.

I worked the next day, Saturday, to make up for having to take off Thursday for Steve's doctor appointments.

Then, of course, there are all the stories and TV documentaries surrounding Sunday's 10th anniversary of 9/11.

I could barely walk or stand at church Sunday because my foot pain was so bad.  Ditto Monday, but I still had to work.

Tuesday Steve and I took the day off for his colonoscopy and cardiology appointment and my orthopedist appointment.  Steve's appointments were okay, but my appointment, not so much.  While I was sure I could simply get another very painful injection in my very large, very painful neuroma and schedule surgery to remove it, doc found another problem.  Now I have to go for an EMG and Nerve Conduction test to determine if I have a problem in my back also.  This means it is longer before injection and surgery.

That means I can't quit my job or even give notice so that I can plan when I can start a new job.

The whole week has been very physically painful and just as discouraging.  Yesterday morning I was working with a patient who was cognitively impaired after spine surgery, and I had to try to lift and move her heavy body by myself.  There simply was not enough staff to help me because corporate keeps cutting staff.  I almost hurt my back because of them.  When the Shark sat at my lunch table only a couple of hours later to discuss a patient's care with another therapist, I could feel the presence of evil next to me. Really.  I couldn't look at him, and I had to leave right after he did, and all I could do is cry.

I worked again today, second Saturday in a row.  Nevermind all the various corporate investors and real estate companies that want their piece of the therapy pie, the insurance companies also have to make money off of us.  A patient who very much needs more rehab time will have to leave on Wednesday because her insurance company won't approve more time, compromising the progress she could make.  And I had to work overtime, again, without pay.

And today is the 39th anniversary of my Dad's death.  

I know God is in complete control of all of this. I also know that as a believer I have to love and forgive my enemies.  But do I have to have lunch with the enemy?  What does God want me to do with my whole complicated situation? Nothing.  I think God just may take care of all of it for me if I wait it out.   I believe it is not in my family's best interest for me to continue to work where I work so many hours and cannot be with them.  I wonder what is ahead.

Wake me up when September ends.