Hospitals can be a scary place for many. They are home to medications, blood draws and surgical equipment that people hope to avoid. I, though, have the opposite feeling about these places. I go to class each day with the dream of soon walking those same hospital halls. I dream to be in the middle of all the chaos – the medicine, the doctors, the sirens. I want to help save the life of a patient; I want to be a part of something great.

My nursing story started when I was a patient at Boston Children's Hospital. I remember my time in the hospital like it was yesterday and feel lucky that I was in one of the best in the world. Even though I was not feeling well, I always remember the nurses and the doctors that I met along the way.

After my hospital stay, I pursued a volunteer opportunity at Boston Children's to stay involved and to give back to the hospital that has helped me so much. Fortunately, during my volunteering, I was exposed to different forms of patient care and was given a preview into the life that I will have someday as a nurse. I was able to meet more and more nurses each day who I would hopefully one day be able to work alongside.

Being a volunteer in such an incredible hospital taught me how to interact with patients in difficult situations and how to interact with their families. These patients and families expect the best care around and I was shown what that care truly looks like. I was taught how to approach a patient with compassion and how to cater to his/her needs.

I was exposed to experiences that I will never forget and was given opportunities with patients that I would never have had without this volunteer program. During my time volunteering, I met many patients with a wide variety of medical challenges. My responsibilities ranged from patient entertainment to baby holding and I was able to be more involved than I ever could have dreamed.

As I have just completed my first year of nursing school, I am able to look back on my experiences and realize that I have learned much more than I was taught in the classroom. Nursing school has gone outside of the textbook and has helped to convey real world situations.

During my first year, I sat in my science classes wondering where this would all add up and wondering why I needed to learn about topics like bacteria and fungi. But, I have realized that everything I am learning and studying is creating the pathway for my specific, patient-focused education that is to come.

Ever since my time in the hospital and since my volunteering, I have come to realize that nursing is my passion. I cannot wait to be walking the hospital halls with other nurses and to be working to save the life of a patient. I have always hoped to have a career that I love and I know that my hard work in nursing school will create that gateway to the hospitals of my dreams. I know that my experiences have shaped me into the person I am today and will help me to become a compassionate caregiver.