More To Life

In a break while in the midst of books, cardiac outputs, respiratory function and Starling Laws (I'm reviewing Physiology right now), my mind drifts off to where I would be had I not chosen to take up Medicine.

My guess would be, I'd be in the United States, with two cars, a house and a steady job as a physical therapist.

Don't get me wrong, I love the work a PT does and I won't take away anything from having gone the US route. It is, after all, the well-beaten path to success as a PT. I hear of other former classmates and schoolmates having all the luxury, the prestige and the pride in answering the question, "Asa naman siya ron?" (Where is he/she now?) with some gusto like "New York", "LA", or "London." Even the less popular places get cred like "Missouri" or "Wisconsin" or "Nepal."

That is the mentality. Check that, that is the reality.

It not only is the glamour thing to do, it is now also the practical thing to do. Or should that be the other way around. I could discover the cure for cancer and fade into the background to a balikbayan nurse talking about an enema he/she gave a popular actor. Maybe an exaggeration, but is it really far from the truth? I don't know.

At a crossroads then, I realized, after months of self-inquiry and prayer, that I did not see myself there. I love being here. I want to be part of the solution here (if there is any). I wanted to make something of myself which I felt that being a physical therapist would not give me. The chance to make a difference. The chance to have an impact on other people here. Naivete talking again? Maybe, but 28 years of life on this earth would probably entitle me to refer to this as hope, however bleak it may seem.

Sure the cars sound nice (Jaguar X Series, BMW's, Benzs). A full-decked house with a pool and a den worthy of MTV Cribs would be a plus. The "prestige" of working abroad would be the icing on the cake.

Temporary high?

For me, I realize, the answer is yes.

Sure, I'll probably get a car someday, plan to travel to places nice and beautiful, get a house, have a familyl, and right now think of passing the boards and building a good career in medicine that challenges me and keeps me happy but in totality, I'd love to be just content.

Stacie Orrico said it best:

There's gotta be more to life
than chasing down every temporary high
to satisfy me.
Cuz the more that I'm
trippin' out thinking there must be more to life.
Well it's life, but I'm sure.
There's gotta be more...
than wanting more.