Germy

Most of us, in some form or another, are storytellers. Afterall, we cannot help but tell our own story simply by piling the days up, one after another. Our hand is forced and the tale begins before we are but a few rapidly dividing cells in our mother's womb -- and this inescapable fabric of humanity works to repel, attract and drive all manners of relations in between. What if I desire to tell the story of a fictional character? A real live person, who lived on soil that I have tread upon,  hundreds of years before me, actually lived who would fill the space that my character who is, by the way, trapped in a google doc that gets dusted off way too infrequently. This character, who undoubtedly grew out of amalgamations of my imagination fed by a variety of caricatures and characters, while not specifically playing the role of a Native American child from the Clatsop tribe, which thrived on the southern aspect of the mouth of what is now known as the Columbia River, represent Na...

The realization that this one was close was followed by the sickening feeling of loss and helplessness.  That which we all dread had happened, five weeks into what is supposed to be the fulfillment of a calling manifest. This intern class, full of the brightest and most accomplished our society has to offer, however, will not be able to hide from this by degrees of separation. It was one of their own. And it is to you, the intern class who I write this for.   I come to you as somewhat of an observer. I have the privilege of working with you and learning from you the finer art of acute pediatric doctoring. I’ve become used to the high frequency of hopelessness in adult acute care and acclimated to working towards peaceful exits to what is often a life fully lived. The flicker of potential with the most disheartening pediatric cases is refreshing and renews the spirit, I know the attraction of pediatric medicine. I think back to myself, starting intern year, and ho...