Put on a Happy Face

Today is Friday, July 31st - the last day of summer vacation. On this coming Monday the second year of medical school begins and with it my final year of purely didactic lessons on this journey of becoming a doctor! (After this year is over there are two years of clinical rotations: the time when we get to actually apply what we have learned in a clinical environment with real patients.)

As this second year approaches I cannot help but recall the beginning of my first year. I was so nervous! I had no idea what to expect, I didn't know any of my future colleagues, and I wasn't even sure that I could handle the enormous academic load that awaited me.

My, my how things have changed.

I face this year with enthusiastic expectation. It was a miracle that I passed first year and I know that it will be God and my family that will miraculously help me pass this coming year. I find myself infused with a quiet confidence - I know that we will make this year. I know that I will be ok.

I am under no delusions. I understand that, like the first year, this year will be very difficult and stressful, all the more knowing that I must pass not only all of my classes but also study for and pass the coming COMLEX - an eight hour test that is the first of three of my physician licensure exams. COMLEX is in June 2016 and I must pass it before becoming an official "3rd year" med student. Happily, the amazing folks at my school (DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine - love you!) will be there every step of the way helping my classmates and myself pass.

So, I'm encouraged. God is good, my family is amazing, and I will one day be a doctor. Whoo-hoo!

I better get ready for school.......

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Crazy Middle-Aged Man

My medical school conducted an interview with me a couple of months ago at the end of my first year. Being a "non-traditional" student (i.e. older than the average bear) they were curious how I was adjusting to the unique demands of the rigorous academic environment. You can watch the interview at this link:

https://youtu.be/t7Syd71_ycM

Someone once asked me if I was crazy for doing this in my 40s. Most men my age are in established careers and enjoying their families, settled in homes and properties. Perhaps I am a bit "off my rocker" for trying this in the summer of life. At most, I can look forward to perhaps 20 or 30 years of practice after I graduate in 2018 (at the age of 47!) - a far shorter time than that anticipated by my younger colleagues.  I am a firm believer, though, that one is never to old to pursue one's passions, to find one's calling. I would rather spend a few decades doing what I love than waste a lifetime in regret.

I'm learning that life is not about the length of the years but the quality of the journey.

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