Plaasabilities

"Reflecting on Nursing School" Neyland Stadium reflects in the windows of the College of Nursing at The University of Tennessee, Knoxville  © 2014 Kristina Plaas, All Rights Reserved The fall leaves on Circle Park at the heart of the University of Tennessee called my name after I finished attending Dr. Thomas' phenomenology group this afternoon. Thankfully I had the presence of mind to grab my camera on my way out of the house and had what I needed when I saw the perfect light and perfect colors. It provided an wonderful opportunity to reflect back on all the years I've spent in this building, the College of Nursing. After many years of blood, sweat, and tears I walked away with not just one, but two degrees from this place. The BSN and PhD experiences were different to be sure, mostly because I was very different. They were equally challenging, though, and much more difficult that my MSN from Vanderbilt. Maybe it's because of that challenge that I love this p...

I am blessed to live in the shadows of the Great Smoky Mountains and work as a National Park Volunteer at Clingmans Dome. I spend as much time as I can in the Smokies enjoying my love for nature and photography. I love the time I spend in the park and the opportunity I have to interact with park visitors. One thing I have learned as a volunteer is to watch out for visitors who might be in difficulty. It is not uncommon to find distressed visitors at Clingmans Dome, due in large part to the effects of high altitude. Looking for someone who might be having an issue has become almost second nature to me. It was a chilly and rainy day at the Dome yesterday, though it was not too terribly cold. We were in the clouds all day so we didn't have nearly the volume of visitors we might have on a clear day. Frankly, there wasn't enough activity to require the service of three volunteers and two GSMA employees. I felt prompted to go ahead and leave before the scheduled end of my shift a...

No longer forward nor behind I look in hope or fear; But grateful, take the good I find, The best of now and here. John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892) American Quaker, Poet, and Abolitionist As I was getting ready for church this morning I was reflecting on this past year and how quickly the months have flown by. It's been a remarkable year, though things haven't always gone the way I thought they might. That's the challenge of placing expectations or time frames on things one can't control -- when things are different you have to learn to adjust. I was raised to have goals in life - things to work toward and accomplish. At an earlier time in my life I fared pretty well at achieving many of those goals. When my health deteriorated and I wasn't able to do as much as I wanted, it was easy to look back with longing for that which I felt I had lost. Reflecting back from time to time is good, but looking back with longing limited my ability to look...

Very few things in life are guaranteed. We have ideas, ambitions, hopes, dreams. We make plans that fail. We hope for things that don't happen. We make mistakes. Separating illusion from reality isn't always easy as some things aren't obvious, especially when we try to make choices or judgments when we don't have all the facts. In short, we aren't perfect. When things don't turn out quite as we hoped or when mistakes are made, it 's good to know we get a second chance to do better. We never have to be stuck with our mistakes if we are willing to do the work to overcome them. A pair of does along Hyatt Lane Cades Cove, Great Smoky Mountains National Park Copyright 2012 Kristina Plaas, All Rights Reserved Repentance and forgiveness enable second chances, where both the one who erred and the one adversely affected by the error get the chance to make amends and try again. The atonement of Jesus Christ makes it possible for us to repent. Being followers of ...