Drift

Yesterday I attended orientation for a new volunteer position I'm going to fill at a hospital near my home. I was not particularly enthused about going. Not because I do not want to volunteer but because this orientation is the same one used to familiarize new hires with their new position...the ones they landed and for which they will receive a salary and benefits. I, on the other hand, sat through an entire day of fascinating stuff and will garner only a lovely lemon yellow smock to distinguish me from other folks at said hospital. I will admit, I had a great time, learned a lot and was only more inspired and encouraged to seek employment in a setting like theirs.

I decided early on to take everything I could from this long day of listening. I saw videos of one of the hospitals where my son in health care got his start. I listened to people whose names were familiar and somehow felt just a little less lonely knowing someone I love had been there before me. I met nice people from every department of the hospital. Enjoyed both breakfast and lunch catered by the hospital and came home with a spiffy new tote bag, bearing the name and logo of the hospital. I also learned a great deal about safety, corporate compliance and the Joint Commission. One thing that stood out to me as a particularly professional executive spoke about standards, who sets them, how they are maintained ad infinitum was the concept of "drift." She explained that standards are great, accountability is also great but even in the very best systems, if no one is watching, something called drift happens. That's when gradual, almost imperceptible deviations from the standard take place. We have all witnessed this in one way or another. The truth is, things left to themselves degrade, they do not naturally improve. When I stop paying close attention to what and how much I eat or how often I exercise, slowly (or maybe not so slowly) my weight creeps up. If I neglect my budget and step outside of those boundaries we have agreed upon as a couple, even just a little, before long, I am way off my goal. In the hospital or clinic setting this can negatively impact patient care. At home I can become fat and poor. Other areas of life are influenced by the drift principle as well. If I routinely accumulate stuff I don't need, before too long my home is once again cluttered and I am overwhelmed with, well, stuff. If I neglect to spend adequate time developing and maintaining relationships, all kinds of them, whether it is the one I enjoy with my husband, my God, my children or my friends, I will see the effect of drift. As I survey the future, I am renewed in my decision to avoid drift. How funny that God can use even something as ordinary as an orientation for a volunteer position to speak to the heart. I'm glad I went.