What does a lobster roll have to do with balance? It’s actually more of a reminder. This is from the beach, when I went last Thursday. Wait–beach? On a Thursday? Aren’t you in medical school? Well yes, I am, but fortunately, they tape our classes and attendance isn’t necessarily required for all of our classes. I remember being a first year student last year and being completely overwhelmed with the prospect of medical school. After all the blood sweat and tears, I was finally in! Then you start school and it’s like a slap in the face. I felt like if I blinked during my classes, I missed an entire block of material. I’d come home from class feeling exhausted, worn out and completely unmotivated to do any studying or additional work. It was definitely a tough experience, but while the learning curve was steep, I think I finally got it by the end.
Flash forward to this year. After a summer off and feeling a bit rejuvenated, I was ready for this year. I’m not necessarily thinking that I’m going to get 100 on every test, but I know that I can find a way to get through school that will work for me and not feel bad about it. Things I’ve realized about myself: I don’t learn that well in class. So I’ve started going to the library and studying the lectures on my own during class. Giving up the obligation of getting up for an 8am class is really freeing. I feel like I’m really learning the material, while enjoying the process of learning it. And last week when it was nearing the end of summer, we realized that it may be one of our last opportunities to go to the beach, so we went. At some point, we will be on the wards, or in clinic and I’ll never have the chance to play hooky and enjoy the last 90 degree day of summer and a gorgeous lobster roll. For that one day, it was nice to pay attention to the part of me that isn’t the medical student.
