The Beginning is Near

As I sit down to send out my "I am moving, and here is my new address" e-mail, I realized that I never did that when I moved from IA to VA last May. The past year has been the most incredible and the most incredibly challenging one I've enjoyed to date. It's hard to sum in any succinct fashion what my year as AMSA's (American Medical Student Association) national president was or meant to me, how much I learned and grew, how meaningful it was to work alongside colleagues who want to make a difference in the world. I will attempt to do so in a future post, but tonight my focus is elsewhere ... on the road west to Seattle and all that must be done in the next few hours before my journey begins.

There is nothing I don't love about a great road trip.

And there's nothing better than one spanning 2734 miles and twelve states over twelve days.

I strike out tomorrow bound for the Pacific Northwest and my next adventure as a family medicine resident physician at the University of Washington. I only recently reunited with my stethoscope, so I'm off to a great start --- now, I just have to remember how to use the darn thing. And I did pull a couple medical books to review as I 'have time' on my solo camping trek across the country. But knowing me, I'll be reading a couple of novels and my photography manuals instead, which is absolutely reality and what I need I right now. Medicine can wait and will be here soon enough.

The next twelve days, the open road, and my trusty Dodge Caravan are mine, all mine. A chance to sing loud with the windows rolled down (partly for style but mostly for necessity because my air conditioning is busted), an excuse to eat bad food (I, of all people, certainly don't need much of an impetus here.), and long stretches of highway with much to ponder in one moment and nothing in particular the next. A rare opportunity, I have twelve days all to myself --- to think, wonder, process, appreciate, relax, celebrate, sightsee, write, photograph, question, pray, seek, understand, be.

How glorious.

And this road trip is the best of all kinds --- complete with a stop home in Iowa to revisit my foundation, my people, my grounding. I owe my perspective, my sense of morality and direction, and my life's personal and professional compasses to the cornfields and gently rolling hills of home.

But many heartfelt thanks to you, Miss Virginia. Believe me, I will not be forgetting you any time soon.