Editor’s note: There are hundreds of pieces in the healthcare puzzle. And employees are one of them. Registered Nurse, Rachel Macdonald shares how she helps make THE difference in providing LEGENDARY HEALTHCARE. Look for more stories this month.

My heart is so heavy. I am relieved, yet sad to say this world has lost another beautiful being due to cancer.

But, what I can tell you is that he was a fighter. Through it all, he never lost sight of his kind, caring, soft, sweet and compassionate soul. . .

I knew a nursing career would not be easy, yet I did not realize that it would be this hard.

You become attached to people. You love them like your own family. So much so that you pray with them, become angry with them, cry with them, laugh with them, sit in silence with them and be strong for them when they are weak. You remain honest with them and allow for them to share with you the tough stuff that isn’t easy to talk about. You support them and their family.

When the shift ends, you go home and think about them. You cry for them, pray for them and question why you do what you do. You sit there and wonder if there is anything more you could have done. You can’t help but take your job home with you. You then try to sleep, wake up and do it all over again with that same smile on your face because you don’t want them to worry about you.

Nursing is not just about medicine, knowledge and healing. Nursing is about compassion and love for other human beings.

It is about providing comfort and care, accepting the fact you cannot save everyone no matter how badly you want to. It is about learning to accept the inevitable.

I am not going to lie. Sometimes I ask myself why I put myself through so much pain and heartache. I ask myself, why did I choose to become a nurse?

Then, instantly, I remember sweet people like Harold and so many others that have had a huge impact on my life. . . because of nursing, I have met some of the most amazing and influential people. It turns out that there is so much more joy than there is heartache when I really think about it. I am actually incredibly lucky that God has blessed and chose me to serve others.

I do it because I couldn’t imagine doing anything else. I do it because the world is full of tragedy, loss and suffering. It is going to be there with or without me and so I choose and will continue to choose to be there for those in their time of need. This is my destiny. No matter how much it hurts, this is why I am here. It hurts to lose the people you grow to love, but I will carry those I have lost in my heart forever and use that power to continue caring for others.