When We Meet Again
With the end of Anatomy on Monday, it was time to say a farewell to our cadavers. We held a memorial service for them today, for all of the medical, dental, optometry and podiatry students to share their gratitude, to talk about what this unbelievable gift meant to each of us. A lot of people shared thoughts, big or small, and I'm very thankful that they all did. Special props to Meredith, performing an acoustic version of Frank Sinatra's "All of Me". She was awesome, and was a great way to close things out.
I think it's very important that we, as medical students, take a moment to acknowledge just what this all means to us. Every day for the last three months, we've slowly dismantled these cadavers, knowing how much information they contained while keeping the fact that this was a person from the front of our minds. It was something we had to do, because those thoughts are too heavy to add to the overwhelming workload of learning anatomy. At least first thing in the morning.
So... today's the day we do bring it to the front of our mind, let ourselves think about the fact that, yes, this was a person, and while they were still alive, they chose to give up their most uniquely personal possession, and give it to me. They gave me this gift because even though I was a complete stranger, they trusted me. They trusted me to treat them with respect, and to use their gift to go out and become a healer.
I wrote the following after the Head and Neck final on Monday, and read it during the memorial today. Dr. Wedel asked me for a copy; I suppose I'll post it here, too.
And thank you... Tom.
When We Meet Again
I lie here in pieces, and wait
Wait for you to notice me
You see me, but you don’t know who I am
But how could you
When your job was to dismantle me,
To dig deep and discover my secrets
All the while pushing the real me
Deep into the back of your mind?
It’s not that I mind- I asked for this
I want you to discover me
To discover yourself
To discover the mysteries of creation
I wanted you to know me
In a way no one else ever could
I just want you to know
That though I no longer breathe
I yet live on
That though my heart beats not
I still have love for you
And that though even my face is no longer me
I hope that you recognize me
If and when we meet again
In other much less sobering news- AAAAHAHAHAHA, the Giants beat the crap out of Cliff Lee and took Game 1 of the World Series! AAAAAAAAH!
I think it's very important that we, as medical students, take a moment to acknowledge just what this all means to us. Every day for the last three months, we've slowly dismantled these cadavers, knowing how much information they contained while keeping the fact that this was a person from the front of our minds. It was something we had to do, because those thoughts are too heavy to add to the overwhelming workload of learning anatomy. At least first thing in the morning.
So... today's the day we do bring it to the front of our mind, let ourselves think about the fact that, yes, this was a person, and while they were still alive, they chose to give up their most uniquely personal possession, and give it to me. They gave me this gift because even though I was a complete stranger, they trusted me. They trusted me to treat them with respect, and to use their gift to go out and become a healer.
I wrote the following after the Head and Neck final on Monday, and read it during the memorial today. Dr. Wedel asked me for a copy; I suppose I'll post it here, too.
And thank you... Tom.
When We Meet Again
I lie here in pieces, and wait
Wait for you to notice me
You see me, but you don’t know who I am
But how could you
When your job was to dismantle me,
To dig deep and discover my secrets
All the while pushing the real me
Deep into the back of your mind?
It’s not that I mind- I asked for this
I want you to discover me
To discover yourself
To discover the mysteries of creation
I wanted you to know me
In a way no one else ever could
I just want you to know
That though I no longer breathe
I yet live on
That though my heart beats not
I still have love for you
And that though even my face is no longer me
I hope that you recognize me
If and when we meet again
In other much less sobering news- AAAAHAHAHAHA, the Giants beat the crap out of Cliff Lee and took Game 1 of the World Series! AAAAAAAAH!