ah September.
A new school year is starting and I’ve been thinking back to the very start of Medical school for my hubby and the crazy adventure it took us to get there. Working at the University, in the Medical school building, I’ve seen the brand new 1st year Medical students taking over the hallways in packs. Looking all young and fresh. Not yet fully aware of what they’re in for.
I thought I’d share our story of how this whole ‘journey to doctordom’ started. I think it’s an interesting tale and I hope you will too.
This blog post could probably be more aptly named “The story of how we got to where we are”. But I thought it sounded too wordy.
Our adventure began in 2006. My hubby had just graduated with his Master’s degree and I had just graduated from Teacher’s College. My husband was wait-listed at 2 Medical schools but we weren’t very hopeful that he was going to get into either of them.
So we did what any responsible, newly graduated couple would do.
We moved out of our house. We put all our belongings in storage.
We went backpacking.
Intending to figure out our future when we returned in September.
We spent 3 weeks in Europe, taking in the sights, sounds and foods of four different countries. It was wonderful. It was fun. We hardly thought about our futures. Kinda.
Then we dragged our tired jet-lagged selves to a tour company and booked 2 weeks of adventures throughout Thailand. We spent the rest of the day navigating the streets of Bangkok, eating delicious (and cheap!) food, emailing our families, and making a few purchases at the market.
What happened next is so clearly imprinted on my mind. And yet, it’s foggy because we were barely coherent when it occurred.
We were sharply awoken at about 4am the next morning by a pounding on our flimsy door.
“KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK” “HELLO? Tel-e-phone!”
We sat bolt upright in our bed and looked at each other. Strange country. All alone. Obviously tourists. No way were we going to open that door. We had read all the cautions before we left. We weren’t going to be lured into a trap. And robbed. Or worse.
We replied with a tentative “No thank- you!”
Ten minutes pass.
“KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK”
“HELLO? Tel-e-phone!”
“Um. No thank-you!”
Hubby and I stared at each other, unsure of what to do. Perhaps this was a legitimate phone call? How? No one knew where we were.
Another 10 minutes.
“BAM BAM BAM”
“HELLO? TEL-E-PHONE!”
“BAM BAM BAM”
“TELEPHONE”
Hubby, finding nothing to arm himself with, cautiously opened the door a crack.
“Hello?”
“You have telephone”
The frustrated woman stomps back down the stairs. Hubby looks at me, shrugs his shoulders and follows her.
I stay in my room where it’s safe. Except now I’m alone.
10 minutes pass.
Hubby finally re-enters our room. And I’m unsure how to read his face.
to be continued...
to be continued...
