Wink: An Online Journal Narrative Essay: Todd Reschke

Instructor: Linda Duffy

1

Taking on Mountains

I can remember the day vividly. I had awoke early that Saturday morning and made myself a strong pot of Starbuck’s Classic Roast. Normally, I put two and half scoops of grounds in, but today I put in an extra scoop, figuring the extra caffeine would give me a helping hand in the event that was about to unfold. Pouring my first cup of java, I glanced over at the closed shades to see the sun’s rays filtering through. With my fresh cup of coffee in my grasp, I traipsed across the kitchen floor towards the window. Pulling the blinds open, the sun hit my face with the warmth and brightness of its morning summer rays. I knew that this was going to be a perfect day to complete my challenge.

Today was the day that I was going to ride my mountain bike to the top of Granddad’s Bluff. It was not going to be an easy task, but I knew that if I pushed myself I would succeed. This was the same hill that my friends said I was crazy for wanting to ride my bike up. The narrow, paved road climbs quickly up the side of the bluff as it meanders back and forth with its hairpin turns. It is only about a mile and a half to the top but because of the steepness, it would probably feel more like 5 miles. Crazy or not there was no turning back now because I had the idea in my head and I wasn’t going to be satisfied with myself until I was on the top of that bluff.

I quickly slurped down my cup of coffee followed by one more and began to gear up for my next big adventure. As I put my shorts and jersey on, thoughts of how good it was going to feel to finally accomplish this goal of mine crossed my mind. I felt like a kid who was going to run his first foot race against his cousin again. The anticipation and excitement of this upcoming challenge created an adrenalin rush throughout my body. Now oblivious to the world around me, I pictured myself going through the motions like it was already happening. As I buckled my helmet and headed out the door, I knew I was now prepared.

The morning air was like a cold washcloth against my skin as I rode towards the base of the mountain. Although the sun was slowly climbing, it had not had enough time to heat the air yet. As I glanced towards the top of the mountain, I could see the flag on top of the rocky point wavering slightly from the morning breeze. I was like a teenager riding his new BMX bike that he finally gotten for his birthday, as fast as his legs would possibly carry him. Crossing over the railroad tracks my challenge began.

I hit the first incline like Lance Armstrong competing in the Tour de France. My speed quickly slowed to a crawl as I powered myself up the bluff. My chain made a smooth mechanical sound as it moved from the larger to the smaller gear, making it easier to turn the pedals. This in turn made my cadence quicken. My legs moved like two pistons, moving up and down creating a force that turned my wheels and carried me closer to conquering this challenge.

As I completed the first corner, my legs began to feel like a thousand tiny needles were pricking them. All I could do was block this feeling out by imagining how good it was going to feel when I reached the top. Sweat now started to bead up on my forehead, and I could feel it stream down my face into my eye. It felt like someone stuck his or her finger directly into my eye socket. I removed my glasses with one hand; steadying my bike with the other and tried the best I could to wipe my eye with my sweaty forearm. While my eye still stung, I could see enough to continue, so I put my glasses back on my face and continued up the hill.

It seemed like hours until I reached a rock outcropping that I had chosen earlier as a halfway point, but it was actually more like minutes. As I continued to pedal, I no longer had any feeling left in my legs. The only way I knew they were still attached to my body was by looking down and seeing them turning the pedals beneath me. My shorts and jersey were saturated with sweat so much so that it felt like I had just jumped into a lake. Sweat now ran off every part of my body like a river. I could taste the salty liquid on

Wink: An Online Journal Narrative Essay: Todd Reschke

Instructor: Linda Duffy

2

my mouth as I pushed myself upward. My sunglasses had fogged up so badly that I had to remove them and put them into my pocket in order to see the road.

As I turned the fourth corner, I knew that I was almost to the top. My heart was pounding out of my chest. It rang in my head like a gong as it pumped blood throughout my fatigued body. I could start to see the hill gradually cresting at the top. This meant I was almost there. My legs were now struggling to turn the pedals, but I knew that I couldn’t give up. I knew this was when I had to dig deep down inside and ask myself how much I wanted this. I was like a marathon runner at mile 22 with 4 more to go. This was it. It was go time.

Struggling over the crest of the hill, I could see a clearing through the trees. I knew that this was my final leg. Now rather than a physical challenge, it was becoming a mental challenge. It was mind over matter. This is where I had to ask myself. Do I quit now or do I power through? As I got closer to the clearing, the road began to level out. My legs seemed to be moving faster now than at the beginning. I finally reached the top and coasted through the clearing, completing what I had set out to do.

As I stood at the top looking down the road that I had just come, a feeling of accomplishment came over me. I felt as though I was on top of the world. I stood there for a few minutes just reflecting back on the ride up and how good it felt to finish this challenge. I knew then what people meant when they talked about having a “runners high”, the feeling that runners get after completing a long run.

Although this bike ride happened in under a half hour, it has had a huge impact on how I view other challenges in life. I now look at many life challenges like this bike ride. Having a little determination can conquer mountains in life. For example, recently I decided to return to college and receive my Associates of Applied Science degree in Architectural Technology. I now look at this challenge the same way as my bike ride up the bluff. As my Uncle Arlen stated about many challenges in life, “It’s uphill and into the wind for awhile, but the view is great once you crest the hill.”

April 2, 2006

1 of 3

The Care Plan OVERVIEW

Care plans describe the care services and support a patient

will receive from his or her healthcare team. They describe

patient needs, necessary actions, and care responsibilities. All

care plans should be based upon a thorough assessment of

the patient’s needs. As such, information should be gathered

from a variety of sources including the patient, the patient’s

family members, and the medical professionals involved with

patient care. Most importantly, while the care plan ultimately

serves many purposes, it should be written for the patient’s

benefit. Thus, they should be written in cooperation with the

patient or the patient’s caregiver when possible, use language

the patient/caregiver understands, and be formatted in a way

that meets the patient/caregiver’s needs.

CONTENT

Care plans should address the following questions:

• Why are we undertaking this plan of care? What led the

patient to seek care?

• What do we hope to achieve via the care plan?

• What actions will we take to achieve our care plan

goals?

• Who will perform what role in the implementation of

the care plan?

• Where will it be carried out? What locations?

• When will the care plan be complete? What are the

care timeframes or milestones?

Additionally, care plans should particularly emphasize the

patient’s role in carrying out the care plan, and it should

therefore focus on the patient’s strengths in order to

encourage the patient to take as much responsibility as

possible in the care process. Moreover, all care plans should

remain sensitive to the patient’s cultural, ethnic, or religious

backgrounds, in addition to his or her gender, gender identity,

and sexuality. Finally, care plans should identify any patient

needs that may not be met by the care plan being

undertaken.

On Audience The audience for a care plan will depend upon

the particular situation of the patient. For

example, if the patient seeks medical attention

for a relatively minor ailment, like a rash for

example, he or she would be capable of

undertaking a care plan his or herself and, as

such, would be the target audience of the care

plan. If the patient suffers from something more

severe that requires assistance from a caregiver

(family, friends, home health aide, etc.), the

care plan should be written with the caregiver

in mind as the target audience.

On Language and Formatting Care plans must be audience-focused in terms

of their content and organization, but also in

terms of their language and formatting. While

you should always tailor your care plan to the

needs of your specific audience, you can follow

these general tips to make all care plans more

inviting:

• Write in short simple sentences of no

more than 15-20 words • Write short blocks of text; use headings

when possible. • Leave white space between blocks of

information • Use present tense and active voice • Use bulleted or numbered list to

delineate lists of information or

sequential action steps • Consider the vision needs of your

audience when you decide what size

font you use or how largely you write.

Additional OWL Resources

• Paragraphing • Tense • Active Voice

2 of 3

ORGANIZATION

While there is no one precise model that care plans must

follow, they should be organized in a way that emphasizes

the most important elements of the plan, and they should

make the purpose, actions, outcomes, and responsibilities

clear for anyone who reads it.

3 of 3

Example Care Plan

Need

Relief for your painful sinus infection.

Actions

1. You will fill prescription for antibiotics at the CVS pharmacy near your home.

2. You will take the antibiotic once per day until they are all gone.

3. You will begin taking over-the-counter Flonase once per day to prevent future infections.

4. You will follow up with your regular doctor in two weeks.

Outcomes

You should experience pain relief within 24-48 hours after beginning the antibiotics. The

infection should be completely gone by the time you have completed your antibiotics. The

Flonase should help prevent future sinus infections.

Responsible

John Smith

ENG101 – Genre Analysis Rubric Criteria 0 (F) (F) (D) (C) (B) (A)

Possible Points 16 0 8 10 12 14 16

Target Audience No

submission.

The work does not

identify the target

audience for most or all

of the documents.

The work does not identify the

target audience for some or all of

the documents and/or

identification may not be

completely clear or supported by

evidence.

The work identifies a target

audience for all documents;

however the identification may not

be completely clear or supported by

evidence.

The work clearly identifies the

target audience for all

documents and provides some

supporting evidence.

The work clearly identifies the

target audience for all

documents and provides

relevant supporting evidence.

Possible Points 16 0 8 10 12 14 16

Structure and

Organization

No

submission.

The work does not

identify the organization

and structure for most or

all of the documents.

The work does not identify the

structure and organization for

some or all of the documents

and/or the identification may not

be completely clear or supported

by evidence.

The work identifies the structure

and organization for all documents;

however, the identification may not

be completely clear or supported by

evidence.

The work clearly identifies the

structure and organization for

all documents and provides

some supporting evidence.

The work clearly identifies the

structure and audience for all

documents and provides

relevant supporting evidence.

Possible Points 16 0 8 10 12 14 16

Formatting No

submission.

The work does not

identify the formatting

of most or all of the

documents.

The work does not identify the

formatting of some or all of the

documents and/or the

identification may not be

completely clear or supported by

evidence.

The work identifies the formatting

of all documents; however, the

identification may not be

completely clear or supported by

evidence.

The work clearly identifies the

formatting of all documents and

provides some supporting

evidence.

The work clearly identifies the

formatting of all documents and

provides relevant supporting

evidence.

Possible Points 16 0 8 10 12 14 16

Voice (Tone and Style) No

submission.

The work does not

identify the voice (tone

and style) of most or all

of the documents.

The work does not identify the

voice (tone and style) of some or

all of the documents and/or the

identification may not be

completely clear or supported by

evidence.

The work identifies the voice (tone

and style) of all documents;

however, the identification may not

be completely clear or supported by

evidence.

The work clearly identifies the

voice (tone and style) of all

documents and provides some

supporting evidence.

The work clearly identifies the

voice (tone and style) of all

documents and provides

relevant supporting evidence.

Possible Points 16 0 8 10 12 14 16

Content No

submission.

The work does not

discuss the relationship

between the content and

presentation of most or

all of the documents.

The work does not discuss the

relationship between the content

and presentation of some or all of

the documents and/or the

discussion may not be completely

clear or supported by evidence.

The work discusses the relationship

between the content and

presentation of all documents;

however, the discussion may not be

completely clear or supported by

evidence.

The work clearly discusses the

relationship between the

content and presentation of all

documents and provides some

supporting evidence.

The work clearly discusses the

relationship between the

content and presentation of all

documents and provides

relevant supporting evidence.

Possible Points 20 0 10 13 15 17 20

Introduction/Reflection No

submission.

The

introduction/reflection

fails to address most or

all of the questions

provided.

The introduction/reflection fails

to address some of the questions

provided and/or the answers are

unclear or superficial. There is

little evidence of reflective

thought.

The introduction/reflection

addresses all of the questions

provided; however, the answers

may be unclear or superficial in

places. There is some evidence of

reflective thought.

The introduction/reflection

addresses all of the questions

provided. The answers are clear

and substantive, demonstrating

reflective thought.

The introduction/reflection

addresses all of the questions

provided. The answers clear

and substantive, demonstrating

a high degree of reflective

thought.

Column Total 0 50 63 75 87 100

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