In this time of uncertainty, we grasp to find things we can control. For me, one of those things is my memories. I am finding myself thinking of my roots, particularly my father. Let me tell you, it is a difficult thing when you find yourself becoming more like you father when you are a 50 some year-old woman!
My father was born in 1927 just as the world changed going into the Great Depression. He lived in Nebraska and was the 4th child of 6 to an Irish farmer.
My grandfather Frances lost his farm in the Depression, but he was lucky enough to find work in Wyoming building the Seminoe dam on the North Platte River in the southeastern part of the state in 1937. That was hard labor work, once that was completed, he secured a job at the Sinclair Oil Refinery and settled down in Rawlins, Wyoming.
Things were still challenging as my father grew up and my grandma – well, let’s just say my Grandma Annie would not have taken to the current quarantine well. To help out at home financially, my dad took jobs. At 14 he worked at a Dairy, which he was promptly fired from because he would clean the vats from the inside. I don’t think my dad was even 5-foot-tall at that time and he just couldn’t reach to clean from the top!
But the next job was at the Union Pacific Railroad in 1941, where he was a grunt and ran errands for people. He worked there for 48 years (minus his time in the Military) in every single capacity except one: an Engineer.
My father was not the person I wanted to go to if I wanted to feel sorry for myself. He would be the first one to tell a story about how someone else had it harder. When you are a teenager full of angst, you do not want to hear how bad other people have it. You want to wallow in your own feelings and have other people join you! Well, that is how I was. Honestly, my kids aren’t as bad as I reflect on this.
Now that we are in this pandemic, I am looking at how things will look on the other side. Am I being given the chance to have a hand in creating my future?
Let me say I have been in business long enough to go through many modern tragedies from 911 and the Recession, to Gabby Giffords shooting (she was my Representative and the shooting was in the town I live), and now COVID-19. I have decided I am pretty resilient or, as a good friend says, “Anti Fragile”.
What I am having a harder time dealing with is not having my Marine son home. This is the first national challenge where I don’t have both my sons with me.
Am I going to have my business in a year or 2? I don’t know, but that has never been a guarantee in my 22 years as a business owner. Am I going to find different strategies to care for my patients? Absolutely. If my father can join the Navy in 1945 and work at a job that was physically and mentally challenging while raising 5 kids, I can do this.
Honestly, with that last statement, if it weren’t for my Mom, none of us would be as relatively stable as we are now. She was a ROCK (but that is in another essay I wrote).
My Dad didn’t understand my desire for having a passion in my work, but he understood that I needed to be educated. He found a way to make sure I got through my Master’s degree; see me start my family, own my own business, and build with my husband; and watch me graduate with my Doctorate. He was proud.
He passed on his resiliency and my ability to empathize with how others do not have the opportunities that I do. Someone always has it harder than I do, so now I am being asked to lift as we climb (Isabel Banerjee) and give a hand up (Nora Stewart), and that is why I am going to come through this a better person and business owner.
How have we adapted at Oro Valley Audiology? We have Telehealth appointments and many recent hearing aids can be remotely programmed. There is so much we can do with a Telehealth appointment, and our patients have very much appreciated what we can accomplish on these appointments!
We are still taking non-functioning hearing aids and getting them to work again. Just call the office 520-825-4770 and we will see you curbside. We have an online store at our website where you can purchase batteries, wax guards, and domes, along with hearing protection and other fun and necessary items. We are also installing drop boxes and secure pickup lockers to keep social distancing.
We will start seeing hearing exams as soon as possible. Thank you for your support and loyalty to shopping local.
