Creating Holiday Traditions on the Road
By Melissa Wirkus Hagstrom, contributor
Spending the holidays on a travel nursing assignment is an exciting and rewarding experience where you can make new traditions that will last a lifetime. From immersing yourself in the local culture and cuisine to connecting with family and friends near and far, there are many ways to make this a holiday season to remember--regardless of where your temporary home may be.
Do as the locals do
Whether you are snowed-in in Idaho or sunning yourself on California’s beaches, picking up a few local traditions can put a fresh spin on your holiday celebrations. Here are some ideas to get you inspired:
• Send locally-inspired Christmas cards or gifts. Get creative: If you’re in Alaska, consider sending a fun, themed card depicting the gorgeous scenery--white-capped mountain peaks, dog sleds and other native Alaskan wildlife.
• Try the regional holiday cuisine. From slow-roasting pork and trying your hand at rice and black beans--traditional Cuban holiday fare that is widely popular in Florida and beyond--to making a Southern favorite of black-eyed peas for New Year’s Day, incorporating some local flavor is a great way to start new culinary traditions.
• Collect ornaments or other trinkets that represent each assignment you’ve taken. You can watch the collection grow year after year and use the items to decorate your home and retell the stories of your travel nursing assignments.
Connect with tech
If your family and friends are spending the holidays in a different city, there is no reason why you still can’t see them face to face. After all, you no longer need to rely on a standard phone call for communication. From Skype to FaceTime, connecting via technology has never been easier or more accessible. Make it a tradition to do a “face call” with your siblings and your nieces or nephews, or spend some time giving your parents or grandparents a quick overview of the technology so they can participate in the fun, too.
Collaborate with colleagues
The great thing about being a travel nurse is that you’re never alone. Most likely, there will be other nurses who are also on assignment at your facility. Even if you’re working in a smaller hospital and you are the only traveler, there are still plenty of ways to make traditions come alive with your fellow co-workers and clinicians. Consider throwing a holiday potluck, where each person brings a signature family dish and tells the story behind it. And for lighthearted fun, rally everyone for a white elephant gift exchange where the goal is to find the most funny, unique or plain-old weird present!
Donate your time
At the end of the day, the holidays are all about spreading cheer and goodwill, and what better way to do that then to volunteer your time. Travel nurses’ schedules are often jam-packed, but if you get creative, you can find ways to give back that don’t take a ton of time. For example, many major cities have holiday fundraising walks and runs, where you can make a donation and get a little bit of exercising in at the same time. Or if you love to sing or play an instrument, consider taking your talents to the hospital floor to entertain patients during the holiday season--a tradition you can carry on every year.
Looking for a new travel nursing assignment? Sign up for free job alerts, or apply today to get started.
© 2015. AMN Healthcare, Inc. All Rights Reserved.