Indiana Jones And Topography

(Rocky Mountain Ski Resort photo taken on the flight out)

On the flight back Saturday, we were flying over the mountains of West Virgina and I looked at a road on top of a ridge. Then I noticed that it dropped down from the top of the ridge into the valley between the adjoining ridge. I wondered if the road was going down to the valley or up to the top of the mountain. I decided it was going up to the mountain.

The trip to San Diego was a mountaintop event. Most importantly it was about honoring Oncology Nurses. That was what the CURE event was about. Nurses in any medical field are tireless, driven, patient focused people. They deserve to have events in their honor. They need to be reminded that they chose an honorable profession. I tell you, there was a glimpse into heaven in that room last Thursday night.

After the readings of the essays, Ann Jillian met and greeted everyone that lined up to meet her. She stayed until the last person got through the line, and it was a long line. To have done it all over, I would have walked down the waiting line and personally greeted each individual and thanked them for what they do.

There were nice things said to me afterwards. I met some amazing people. My reply to folks that said nice things was, "I didn't write the essay. Annette did. All I did was transfer it into a visible format." The neat thing is those stories are being written every day. There were three nurses honored, but there are thousands of others out there that could have the same things said about them.

How do we honor them? I still stick with the creed of "Be Nice." Ponder those words and ask for the reality of what they truly, truly mean. If you can't figure it out, get someone to help you figure it out. Don't look for the answer, listen for it. You see, I didn't climb the mountain on my own. People helped me up it. Annette was one of them.

I was listening to a classical pops music channel on the airplane and the first song I heard was the theme from "Raiders of the Lost Ark." I thought about how that song, when played at the end of the movie, captures the momentum of the movie but also makes me feel like the adventure is going to continue. It doesn't put a final stamp on the movie, it carries me to more excitement.

As we said our "Godspeeds" ( I say friends never say "Goodbye," they say "Godspeed") to each other at the airport the other night, I told Annette that I felt like we were standing on the top of a mountain. She said, "Stay there for awhile and don't let anyone knock you off of it. I believe there are some fantastic things for you to see from there."

What a person. Of course she is.....she's a Nurse.