Ahoj, and good day from Prague!

Today’s post with its one photograph is more traditional than yesterday’s post with its nine videos. In preparing and sending components for that first post, I discovered that, although CZ has evolved rapidly since the fall of the Iron Curtain, its Internet infrastructure has not evolved quite as quickly. Keep this in mind if you are planning a trip to Prague in the near future.

Time and distance

It seems that this morning’s plenary, which reminded me that there are many facets to bridging the gap between research and practice, has set the tone for my thoughts as I prepare today’s post. Two facets that have come together here are time and distance.

This annual research congress gives me the opportunity to reconnect with many colleagues and mentors I have known for a very long time. Although I live in the same country as many of them—even the same city—I allow too much time to pass between visits, and I find it ironic that I have traveled thousands of miles to reconnect with a colleague from “down the street.” When we do reconnect, though, it seems as if it was just yesterday when we last visited. It is fascinating how our human instrumentation deals with these two concepts of time and distance.

Today, I had the honor and privilege to make some new connections. I attended a reception for congress attendees who are recipients of leadership grants. These grants, provided with Sigma Theta Tau International Foundation for Nursing funds, enabled nurse scholars to attend this congress who otherwise might not have been able to attend. How moving it is to see the foundation’s mission in action. By supporting these scholars with funds made possible through the generosity of honor society members, the foundation has helped bridge the gap between research and practice, thereby decreasing the time for important connections to be made, shortening the distance to completing the research that’s needed to impact practice, and improving our ultimate goal—improving global health.

This picture was made possible through member
donations! Thanks!

Crossing boundaries

Spanning boundaries is in Prague’s DNA. People of all cultures converge on this city to experience its rich history, and we all seem to get along just fine. If we could only get our governments to do this when we get home, what a world it could be, but … I’ll leave the global politics out and move on to one of my favorite topics—music.

Prague is steeped in musical tradition. Many of the masters of the classical period found their inspiration in the beauty that is Prague. Classical music in its original form lives on today in the many cathedrals and music venues of Prague. Almost every night of the week, the music of Dvořák and Mozart is heard flowing from the city’s hallowed halls, but the music doesn’t stop there.

The street musicians of Prague rival any I have seen in my travels around the globe. From the solo artist I observed performing Carmen on glasses filled with water to the four-piece string ensemble I heard playing “Born to be Wild” on classical instruments, variety and talent abound here. As spectators gather spontaneously to appreciate these amazing sounds, smiles and nods are exchanged and boundaries are spanned. These flash audiences soon dissolve and their members move on, but their members will forever share the memory of their moments together.

My advice to you today is: No matter where you are, appreciate some music, share a smile or nod, and span a boundary.

Until my next postcard from Prague, be blessed and be safe!

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.