Today has been a happy day...I was a groucho when I woke up this morning but several things have improved my mental state. We had a talk from a genetic counselor lady in Developmental Biology today about cystic fibrosis. The interesting thing about it (aside from her being a genetic counselor) was that she is 38 and has cystic fibrosis. The average life expectancy for cystic fibrosis patients (as of 2008, I think) is 37. I guess what struck me most about her talk (cuz I was sorta bored in the first half) was how she said "she takes life seriously". Not as in being a serious fun-sucker all the time but with enjoying absolutely every minute, since she expects that she'll die earlier than most people. It really hit home for me...as stressful as grad/med school is right now & as much information as I'm trying to fit in my head, I really should be actively enjoying life & everything around me. It's hard to remember that sometimes but I thought about today.
Teaching Splash this weekend (2 classes of 9th-12th graders, everyone made beautiful vision boards) really helped give me some perspective on how I am perceived rather than just how I perceive myself. They were asking questions like "How did you become successful?" and wanting general advice & it made me realize that I am (somewhat) qualified to answer a lot of those questions. As much as I feel like a complete failure sometimes (not to be self-deprecating, but that is seriously how it feels every now and then), I should appreciate the fact that I have gotten to experience a lot of cool things in my 22 years. I'm going to try to appreciate that more. ALSO got an email from Dr. W (Dr. Williams, Honors Program/Foundation Fellows director for the non-UGA peeps) about serving as a judge for the FF Interview weekend. How crazy!? Good to know that I've left some sort of legacy behind at UGA, though weird that I'm now in a position to "judge" whether other people are qualified for FF. Excited about that!
I'm also really grateful for the friends I have...I've had lots of ups & downs lately and some of my friends are going through downs right now and it's just nice to know that there are certain people I'll always be able to count on & that I hope feel like they can count on me. AND nice to know the people that I shouldn't rely on. I think both are equally important . I've been talking with my friend Alison about it a lot lately (she's probably the person that I'm closest to here & it's nice to be able to be totally weird & go through the ups and downs with someone in a similar educational and social predicament) & it just astounds me how people here can say one thing and act the complete opposite way. There are only so many people you can let into your inner circle & I'm fortunate to have found a special few.
All in all, a pretty good day. Though I have a ton of stuff to get done tonight (!!!) Hip hop class in an hour - off to try and read two papers for genetics before then!
<3
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