You’ve made it to your last year of nursing. Somehow. I think you cried more days than you laughed and you warmed many toilet seats as you hid from the cold whirling hospital hallways. You have washed more people than you will ever count, wiped more bums than what one would think was humanly possible. You have learned the power behind showering and the way it alters someones psyche, healing them for at least that one day. You quickly discovered the therapeutic properties of tea and use it like a bandaid for the soul, including your own. You have walked home at night and vomited into the bushes. You have gone without sleep. You have also discovered love on a level that can only be witnessed in the end stages of life. You have seen compassion and empathy and learned the strength they carry in saving lives. You have become so much more confident and alive. You have also learned what it is to be tired, to be burnt out and to question your dreams. You have watched someone take their last breaths. You have placed 11 bodies in bags. You are an amazing nurse. A nurse who shows up each shift and cares for those who can no longer care for themselves. I hope you continue with this last year, even though the doubt has grown and the dream has started to die. I hope you continue to find fulfillment and love for a job where compassion, empathy, generosity, patience and care are the essence of success in promoting life and leave impact even in death.