I received a couple of phone calls today from fellow
Classmates from the St. Vincent's Hospital School of Nursing, Class of
1965. These dear friends were wondering if I planned on marching in the
St. Patrick's Day Parade. Believe me, there is nothing more exciting than
proceeding up the caverns of 5th Avenue in the sun with the bagpipes playing
and the wind blowing in your hair, the crowds of people on either side of the
street all sporting their green, shouting out the praises of the great St.
Vincent's Hospital. So why am I not going?
The last time I marched in the parade, I had traveled by Amtrak Train from Albany, NY to Penn Station and I wore my good, solid New Balance sneakers as I walked to the SVH meeting spot on the side street off Madison Ave. My Clarks shoes were in a bag by my side since I was told "No sneakers were allowed in the parade". When we got the word that we would soon be moving out of the side street and into the march up 5th Avenue, I hesitated for a moment as I thought "this is crazy, Mary, leave your sneakers on". Then I succumbed to peer pressure. "No, it’s against the rules". "We can't wear sneakers." "We won't be asked back to march in the parade again if we don't follow the rules". So, at the last minute,and against my better judgement, I quickly removed my sneakers and slipped into my Clarks. Now, my Clarks are not bad shoes and they are fine for many daily activities, but they are certainly not the best choice for an extended march in a parade – especially when one is 66 years old. By the end of the parade I had blisters and rather severe planters' fasciitis. One thing led to another and by the time it was all over I had fallen as a result of the planters' fasciitis and ended up with a prepatellar bursitis and a torn medial meniscus. My knees have never been the same and the downward spiral was a direct consequence of the plantar fasciitis that resulted from marching without my good, supportive sneakers. So this is my reason for writing this little essay: I hope to prevent a similar thing from happening to any other St Vincent’s Hospital School of Nursing graduate. We are nurses, for God’s sake, and we should be setting an example of wearing proper footwear for a marching event. When a rule is wrong, when a rule just doesn’t make sense, we must use the brains we were given and follow what we know to be right. Hopefully, others will follow our lead as we march up 5th Avenue.
The last time I marched in the parade, I had traveled by Amtrak Train from Albany, NY to Penn Station and I wore my good, solid New Balance sneakers as I walked to the SVH meeting spot on the side street off Madison Ave. My Clarks shoes were in a bag by my side since I was told "No sneakers were allowed in the parade". When we got the word that we would soon be moving out of the side street and into the march up 5th Avenue, I hesitated for a moment as I thought "this is crazy, Mary, leave your sneakers on". Then I succumbed to peer pressure. "No, it’s against the rules". "We can't wear sneakers." "We won't be asked back to march in the parade again if we don't follow the rules". So, at the last minute,and against my better judgement, I quickly removed my sneakers and slipped into my Clarks. Now, my Clarks are not bad shoes and they are fine for many daily activities, but they are certainly not the best choice for an extended march in a parade – especially when one is 66 years old. By the end of the parade I had blisters and rather severe planters' fasciitis. One thing led to another and by the time it was all over I had fallen as a result of the planters' fasciitis and ended up with a prepatellar bursitis and a torn medial meniscus. My knees have never been the same and the downward spiral was a direct consequence of the plantar fasciitis that resulted from marching without my good, supportive sneakers. So this is my reason for writing this little essay: I hope to prevent a similar thing from happening to any other St Vincent’s Hospital School of Nursing graduate. We are nurses, for God’s sake, and we should be setting an example of wearing proper footwear for a marching event. When a rule is wrong, when a rule just doesn’t make sense, we must use the brains we were given and follow what we know to be right. Hopefully, others will follow our lead as we march up 5th Avenue.
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