“In the confrontation between the river and the rock, the river always wins…not through strength, but by perseverance.”
Do you remember your first job? I will never forget mine because I can never live it down. As a naive, sheltered teenage girl who was afraid of anything that moved me, I could have died from embarrassment.
I didn’t even drive or have a car, and I knew Daddy
wouldn’t be any help. Ma held out a little money from her grocery budget, bless her heart, and gave it to me. So I saved up to pay for a taxi if I did find work. I needed to figure out where to start. I didn’t have any experience. It may be best to do some volunteer work first. My school had a program called “Future Nurses,” so I applied, and they accepted me.
I had my little pink and white candy striper outfit on, and it was my first night. I was
a nervous wreck. What if I messed up? What if they laughed at me? One of the head nurses gave me a tour of the hospital, and then my first assignment was to go around to all the rooms and provide the patients with fresh ice water. In the first room, a man was lying in bed watching television. I tried my best to act friendly, hoping to hide that I was shaking and unsure of myself. I gave him my best smile. “Well, good morning, sir; how are you today?
He nodded.
I grabbed his pitcher and walked out of the room. I wanted to do an excellent job, so I filled his pitcher to the top with ice before adding the water. I walked back into his room and set the refill on his table.
He started laughing and 
couldn’t hold it back. “Wow,” he said, “that will be refreshing.”
“I hope so,” I said, “I even gave you extra ice.” I turned and walked out of the room.
When I talked to the nurse at the desk and questioned why the man was laughing, I wanted to walk out and never go back.
She told me I had not filled his water pitcher but his urinal.