Mentorship - The First Week

            It’s only the second month of school, and I can already feel the pressure building on me. Junior year is the big one; the one where everything comes together, gets stapled, and sent off to the college of my choice. The past week of school has consisted of an unnecessary amount of work that I have deemed “pointless and monotonous”. School, after attending for 12 years, has lost its touch. There was a point where I really enjoyed learning the new and fascinating material, but I feel, especially this year, that I’m just taking the same classes I have been since freshman year. Thankfully, my mentorship arrived just in time to pique my curiosity and untie the mental restraints that school has forced on me this year.  

            Last week was my first week at Gainesville Surgery Center. The first day was spent getting acquainted with the staff (and with over 70 doctors available it will be quite a difficult task) and getting to know how the filing system works. On just my second day I was ushered into the OR and was able to witness, up close and personal, a foot surgery to remove bunions. This is what high school has been lacking. Sitting in a desk and learning about something is nowhere near in the same league as experiencing it; the sights, smells, sounds, and just the atmosphere. From school I have been mildly interested in medicine; mildly being slightly more than anything else. Now that I have been on the “frontlines” I have found myself excited about progressing into my future and have been doing the rare task of finding a path to get to where I want to be. I’m narrowing my career search and gaining valuable experience at the same time. All the frustrations that the school year has presented has been softened by my passion that I’ve found in my mentorship.

 

~Grey