Sitting through spouse orientation to medical school I was completely overwhelmed at the task in front of me and Andrew. The only thing I remember from the session (other than a sense of panic in the pit of my stomach!) was a piece of advice an older doctors wife shared. Throughout life in the medical career, she explained, there will always be dots. First is getting accepted to medical school, then passing Step I and then Step II. On the list goes from graduating medical school and getting accepted to residency to establishing your career and patient base. This wise wife advised us to resist the urge to live life always looking ahead to the next dot.
The problem with living dot to dot is that you miss out on everything in between. This message is powerful and completely true for everything in life. When I later shared the message with Andrew that evening, we vowed to each other that we were going to live between the dots and find ways to accept and enjoy everything in our life, to live in the present.
Reflecting on the past 4 years, I am extremely thankful for the advice we set as our family motto. During medical school we were able to experience the most exciting, exhausting, and gratifying time of our lives. While I look ahead to the long and tiring years ahead of us in residency, the anxiety in my stomach is gone. Although I don’t know details, I do know what lies before our next dot… the amazing possibilities God has planned for our family!
