“May you live in interesting times” is a familiar Chinese phrase that passes through my mind almost daily. Whether I’m reading or learning about people, politics, money, family, or national/world events, this thought is inescapable.

Today, National Nurses Week 2026 begins. While I don’t always keep track of annual celebratory milestones, this one isn’t ignored.

In the years prior to living in a trailer park and before moving into the rented, single-family home in which I grew up, my brothers and I spent a few years living with my parents…in the home owned by my grandparents…with my grandparents.

I recently celebrated a birthday, very quietly, which is uncommon for me.  Born on St. Patrick’s Day and with Irish roots, it has long been a day of considerable celebration. 

For the third consecutive year, Missouri’s legislature has a bill in committee about nursing home patient abuse, neglect, and wrongful death.