I imagine being a surgeon to be a very tedious job 99% of the time. Like being a mechanic. You know what's there & what you need to do.
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I liked nursing & care work because whilst the tasks are routine &repetitive, people are so varied & you get to try to make them feel better
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And this varies so much. I remember John. Sympathy irritated him. 'Stop moaning, you miserable old git' made him roar with laughter.
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I actually like talking to people when there is a purpose to it. When it makes them feel better, enjoy life more. Otherwise, mostly no.
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Particularly very difficult people. It can be like a puzzle to be worked out. Something is wrong. How to get thru it & communicate.
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Eg, I worked with an elderly black South African lady. A political refugee. She'd been an anti-apartheid activist. Incredibly fierce.
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Simply would not let white carers do anything for her. We thought we understood. Approached her with great politeness. This made her angrier
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She finally let me help her & she said it was because I was 'smiley' rather than formal & polite. She felt dislike & mockery in politeness.
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And that was the key. Warmth not politeness was the way to get her to accept that white carers genuinely wanted to help her.She doubted this
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Also, she loved to talk about the work of Oscar Wilde. People are very interesting & complicated.
End of conversation
New conversation -
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For me, at least (if you don't mind me answering) the joy is about making things work, knowing you fixed them.
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