rainbow sherbet

What I'm learning lately:
1. The sicker or stranger the patient, the more interesting he/she is to work with.
2. People lie, a lot.
3. There is more grief and pain in this world than I had ever imagined. I now deal with several overdose patients a week. It is heartbreaking to watch someone feel hopeless or worthless.
4. Anger can be a very good thing.
5. It's a hard thing to figure out how to let past hurts work for the good now and not just keep hurting.
6. I miss my family.
7. The more I take care of other people, the more difficult it is to stay focused on taking care of myself first. There are so many hurting people, that I tend to neglect sleep or exercise or journaling for the sake of others. It's a tough balance I'm trying to figure out.
8. I often have to put aside all the "professional" things I learned in social work classes and follow my instinct. For example, I doubt my classes would endorse sitting indian style on the floor with a client. However, it amazed me how sitting on the floor and listening to music helped open up a thirteen year old girl who was by no means going to talk to me in a formal setting. People are different. Needs are different. I'm trying to be as flexible as possible.
9. At the end of the day, at the end of hearing so many stories, I need someone to listen to me.
10. It is difficult to be a student. I want to know everything now. I want to be an autonomous social worker right now. I'm tired of learning, of messing up, of trying again, of getting the hang of things. I've been in school for almost 19 years and it's time to be done.
11. It's strange how much stress affects the physical body.
12. I pray, a lot, for wisdom.