Kristina Ibitayo, MSN, RN, became interested in nursing in her preteen years, when she spent her summers “helping my mother in the rudimentary clinic she founded in a remote village in the Guatemalan highlands. In nursing school, I discovered the joys of journaling and bringing to consciousness that which was buried deep within.”
After receiving her nursing associate degree in 1985, she worked full-time in various nursing units. “In the evenings I attended classes, first earning my journalism degree and then my BSN. I never left school for long, earning an MSN in nursing administration in 2004. But after a last carefree summer, I made the biggest change in my life. That change became my current delight, as changing to part-time work status allowed me the flexibility of attending The University of Texas at Arlington as a PhD nursing student.”
Ms. Ibitayo puts her journalism degree to practice by working as an editorial assistant for the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing and “by disseminating my own thoughts” in poems. “On every journey,” she states, “there must be family and friends to encourage and applaud; I am blessed to have both. Every success should be celebrated, so my husband and sons help me celebrate frequently, for each small achievement is a stepping stone into my unwritten future.”
Knowledge
Is it possible
To hold greatness
In the palm
Of your hand,
And not acknowledge
Its existence?
Is it possible
To clench your hand
So tightly
That new life
Recants freedom,
Bowing as it retires?
Is it possible
To unfold prison
Walls, extending
Friendship’s open hand,
To that which was
Destined to be?
Is it possible
To live a dream
In this tarnished,
Yet so needy
World of ours?
Is it possible
To banish doubt,
And meet life’s challenge
With a resounding — Yes?
Friendship True
If the world ran
Away,
I would remain
Still.
Quiet
By your side,
I would remain
Faithful friend,
From now
Until the day
Forever.
When doubt enters,
And emotions mask
Friendship’s cloudless joy,
Then eyesight fails,
And only truth unseen
Consoles,
A true friend
Stays
Lifetime’s course.
Dare to believe
In friendship
True.
