Today is Valentine’s day … also it is the 11th anniversary of Iowa Specialty Hospitals & Clinics (Clarion) doing orthopedic surgery. Now, big time surgery is routine for us but back then, this was huge for both Orthopedic Specialists (then OSMS) and us. Wright Medical Center (our name back then) was barely doing any surgery at the time … I remember the Doctors down there in Fort Dodge at the clinic asking me if they weren’t able to come to a mutual decision with the Fort Dodge hospital would they be able to do their big cases up here. “Sure” (never thinking it would happen, I was all about saying yes and being nice), then it happened. I was having lunch with Mark and we were talking about that time and how our 44 year old autoclave dropped dead that first week from overwork. “That was a massive paradigm shift!”; life did indeed change completely that valentine’s day in 2006. Oh, also our meltdown party (March 31, mark your calendars) started out as a celebration for one year of orthopedics in 2007. (One of our CRNA’s even swung from the rafters at Clarmond in celebration.)
Paradigm shifts. How often does the landscape of our lives change our outlook completely? Sometimes fairly often, sometimes not that often. But when it does – how do we see? Do we slap on our victim lenses or our opportunity lenses? Whether change presents itself in a good way or not great – we can get out there and celebrate or educate or pontificate. A friend from school is going through chemo after breast cancer. She is taking everyone through her journey on Facebook. Now, some I know would say this is a personal thing and should be private, but Tracie, by putting herself out there is making the journey easier for others. And, perhaps encouraging others to get their mammo’s. She is rockin’ her journey with a huge smile. Her paradigm shifted big time this year – she could have legitimately chose to be a victim but she chose to be a hero instead.
Happy Valentine’s Day everyone. Enjoy your cookies, your loved ones, and your awesome journeys.
