What did you get for Christmas?

I am coming of a great couple of days away... so I don't want to seem like a downer... but it's something that has been on my mind for a while...

A dear friend of mine from nursing school was offered her dream job about a month ago. It was an internship for new nurses that would augment her formal nursing education while allowing her develop practical, on the job, skills. It was a competitive application process... but I have to say, I was not surprised AT ALL when she was selected. She is bright, kind, sweet, thinks well on her feet, has a comforting smile and a very sweet nature. Really, all the qualities you could want in a nurse. A few days ago she got "the call." Due to budgets, blah blah blah blah, the program had been cut. Not only did she lose her dream job before it started, she lost her job in a very tight market. Whatever they have told about a nursing shortage is not true in Buffalo, NY currently. Through the tears and disappointment she texted me "I feel like I got my favorite Christmas present and someone returned it on me."

That is the where the object lesson ends... bc I'm not going to belittle my friend's disappointment by comparing it to other experiences or "lessons learned" in life. It's just that her analogy made me think. How often are we disappointed and what do we do with that disappointment in life? How often do we feel like someone returned our gift without our permission? I can point to different chapters in my life and examples of how I handled disappointment differently every time. What is that quote? Something like "Life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% of how you respond." While I can see validity to that, I know that I handle these "happenings" differently depending upon my other circumstances.

A dear friend recently gave me the kick in the pants I needed. I think others may have tried, but I was not ready to hear them. I wanted to wallow in certain disappointment, but P, as I will call her, would not allow that. I have had wallowing time and she told me in no uncertain terms, it's move-on time now. She reminded me that while the things that happen to us are not always fair, they become our reality and we must decide how to manage the let down. Thank GOD, for friends like P!