Breanna Welch

UWRT 1101

Dr. Arnold

September 16, 2015

Literacy Narrative

When I think of what I am literate in, of course I think about reading and writing.

However, I did not think about being literate in something that I have a passion for, CNA work. I

had an idea of what I wanted to do with my life around my sophomore year in high school.

Every time that I tell someone about knowing so early they are shocked. However, it was not

set in stone that I wanted to become a nurse. It took the rest of my high school years and a lot

of hard work to know for sure.

I moved to North Carolina my sophomore year in high school. It was hard enough to get

used to the new environment, much less figure out what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

My counselor, Mrs. Sherrick, was there for me from the beginning. She helped me get the

classes that I needed to graduate on time. I remember sitting in her office on my first day at

Southeast Guilford High School. She handed me a list of classes to pick from. She told me to

take my time, but we both knew that would not be a problem. The class that I picked turned

out to be the best decision I made.

Health Science I, was the class that I picked. I had an idea of what it was about, but I still

wasn’t completely sure what I was getting myself into. However, I did hear great things about

the teacher. So, I went ahead and kept it on my schedule. Today, I am so happy that I did. I

found out that I was really good at doing health related work. Of course some of the things

were difficult, such as, learning all of the medical terminology and having to learn the anatomy

of the human body, but nothing was impossible. After this class I decided I wanted to continue

taking the health related courses and take Health Science II, because I realized that I could love

nursing and I wanted to learn more about it.

Going into Health Science II, again, I had somewhat of an idea of what it was going to be

like. This was the last step before the big leagues in health classes at my high school. I knew

that I had to do the absolute best that I could. Everyone adored my teacher Mrs. Watson. She

was definitely a sponsor in my becoming literate in CNA work. When I was feeling like I could

not do it, she told me that she saw something in me and that I could become an amazing nurse.

She was the first one to push me to be my best and go through with this dream that I had to

become a nurse.

The last class to take, is the Nursing Fundamentals class my senior year of high school.

This class is very competitive. You must have certain grades, activities, and an interview to even

be considered for the class. Luckily, I was keeping my grades up and decided to start getting

more involved at school. The worst part, though, was the interview. I remember when I arrived

at the school. I arrived thirty minutes early, because I really wanted to be there on time. To a

senior in high school, this is determining your future. I was pacing in the hall way and hoping no

one would walk by and wonder why I was talking to myself, asking questions that Mrs. Watson

may ask me. I finally heard her tell me to come in, as another student left. I could not tell

whether the look on their face was terror or them being tired. Either way it was not helping my

nerves. I followed Mrs. Watson into the classroom and took a seat in front of her desk. Trying to

calm my nerves, she asked me how I was doing and talked about how early it was. Small talk is

great, but I was really hoping that she would get on with the real questions already.

Finally, out came the first question. Why do you want to be in the Nursing Fundamentals

class? Of course I said what everyone probably said, to become a nurse. Then she asked

another question that was a bit harder for me to answer. Why do you want to be a nurse? At

the time it took me a minute to think. Why do I want to be a nurse? Why do I want to be

around blood and guts? Why do I want to spend so many years in college and go so in debt?

Why do I want to get yelled at by patients while I try to make them better? Why go through all

the trouble? There is one answer to all of these questions, because I want to help people. In the

end I want to have changed someone’s life and to be the person who makes the difference.

The fact the all Mrs. Watson did was smile and say “Have a nice day.” did not help my

nerves. All I could do is just wait now. It took a week for the list go up of who got into the class.

It was a nerve wrecking week. Then, finally I saw the white sheet of paper hanging on the wall

with twenty small names on it. I slid my finger down beside the names until I reached one that

looked familiar. I got accepted into the nursing fundamentals class. I could not hold in my

excitement. I immediately texted my dad, mom, brothers, best friend, and grandma. I never felt

so accomplished.

It was finally the first day of Nursing Fundamentals class and yet again I was nervous.

Mrs. Watson had retired and a new teacher was coming to teach us. Nobody knew anything

about the new teacher, except that her name is Mrs. Bailey. The class barely even knew each

other. I remember thinking that there is no way I can work with people that I don’t know, I can

barely make friends. Eventually, I would not only learn how to work with strangers, but also

how to work with people I do not like. Which will later help me in the nursing profession. This

woman with a bright red face walked in the room and greeted everyone with a kind hello. We

could all tell that she was nervous, but we were too. However, we got along from the get go.

We started skills right away and I loved them. They were not easy at first, but once I

learned all of the steps I knew I would do great. Every day we would learn a few skills and some

medical abbreviations. Both the skills aspect and the mental aspect are important to becoming

a CNA. You cannot just know how to physically do something, you have to use your mind. That

part did, however, come pretty easy to me. We would practice skills on the manikins and on

each other. Working so closely with everyone you quickly learned who you got along with, who

didn’t like you and who you just could not work with. Having to work in pairs the entire time,

sometimes you would get paired with someone who you could consider an enemy, I would

consider that my conflict. You had to work with them, because in the nursing field, you are not

always going to like your coworkers. Your job counts on you doing good, quality work, so you

just have to suck it up.

After you get past the conflict and realize you are all here for the same common goal,

you find a way to push aside your differences and work together. This really counted when it

came to the second semester. We worked in the nursing home for the entire second semester

leading up to getting our CNA. To get your CNA you have to have so many class hours and so

many clinical hours. We would go and actually do what CNAs do. Working with residents and

doing what needed to be done. As long as it was not out of our level of education, we could,

and would do it.

I really enjoyed my time in the nursing home, because of the experience. It was amazing

to see the joy on the residents faces when we would come to take care of them. They loved

having us and we loved to be there. However, it was not always sunshine and rainbows. The

jobs could get bad and very irritating, but if you don’t learn how to handle the bad things and

bad days of being a CNA then I don’t believe that you are capable of being fully literate.

Learning that even on my bad days I would still love my profession, helped me to set in stone

what I wanted to do with my life and to continue my journey to become a CNA. This meant

putting in a lot more work to prepare for the CNA exam at the end of the semester.

We left the nursing home a couple weeks before the exam. We would practice skill after

skill, until we got it right. If you messed up you started all over. It looked like a tornado tore

through the room. There were clothes, gloves, stethoscopes, wash clothes, blankets,

wheelchairs, etc. everywhere. Through all the chaos our teacher still found a way to cheer us on

and give us all of her love and support.

When it came to the day that we took our CNA exam, everyone was nervous. That day

we put all the differences aside and came together as a class. We cheered each other on as we

walked back to the testing room and when someone came back, we asked how it went and how

they felt. When we were sitting there, anxiously waiting for the results of the test, we were

holding hands and almost crying with people we swore we didn’t like the day before.

Thankfully, everyone received their CNA that day. It was one of the happiest days of my life. I

felt like I could actually do something with my life. To be literate in something like CNA work

was amazing to me. I would not change a struggle or an accomplishment on my road to

becoming literate.

Mrs. Bailey had to be the main factor in me becoming literate in CNA work. She started

off the year not knowing what she was doing, and so did I. She became a friend and some one

that I could go to if I was feeling bad or was doubting myself. There would always be a smiling

face there to help us. Even through the tough times she was having she never put it on the

class. We were like a dysfunctional family. Half of the class did not like the other half, but Mrs.

Bailey hated that we did not get along. She always tried her hardest to push us together and

settle the differences. In the end, she made us all better women, CNAs, and eventually nurses.

As our class motto said, “These smiling faces and helping hands, could one day be your

lifesaver.” I will believe this and keep this with me. This is why I became literate in CNA work

and why I am continuing on to change the world as a nurse.