Pancakes

A few weeks ago, we hiked to Pancake Rocks. Located about 45 minutes from downtown Colorado Springs on the west side of Pikes Peak. It was a beautiful day with few people on the trail, but we still carried our masks in our pockets to throw on as we approached other groups.

The trail started off as dirt but slowly became layered with packed-down snow as we steadily climbed up the side of the mountain. This didn’t become a problem until we were hiking down later. I was slipping, sliding, and laughing my way down as my shoes struggled to grip the snow.

January felt a little like this hurtle downwards where in some moments I was in total control, while others I was in free fall.

This month, I finished my residency interviews. Next up is the task of ordering the programs based on my preferences for where I would like to spend the next 5-7 years learning to be a surgeon. A daunting task as I weigh my values with those of the residency programs. Values that include both my personal and professional life. The National Residency Match Program is a complicated, and somewhat mysterious, process that matches applicants to programs across the country based on an algorithm. Seems a silly way to decide the fate of graduating medical students, but supposedly it works. 

I also spent the month reading and contemplating leadership for an elective I was taking. Is leadership the same as management? What is one quality leaders should embody? How do we build effective teams? How will I lead? All were questions I considered over the last few weeks.

We also started a New Year’s goal of eating plant-based dinners twice a week. I cooked tempeh for the first time and learned that a food processor will shave brussels sprouts in a fraction of the time it would take me to thinly slice them by hand. I actually mentioned that I was doing this during one of my interviews and they promptly suggested that I look at the cookbook – Thug Kitchen. I’m pretty sure there is nothing plant-based about this book.

If I’m being totally honest, the mundane of life at home ate at me this past month, but I’ve found joy in watching the little kids at the elementary school across the street return to in-person classes. I wore lipstick for an interview and felt thrilled to be getting a little more dressed up than normal. We watched Soul and felt something bigger than ourselves. I both kicked ass and got my ass kicked at cribbage.

This month was a good reminder of why I started this blog in the first place. The purpose:  Finding meaning in the mundane and discovering the grace and beauty that lies between the lines. While the big events are great, it’s the everyday that makes up the most of this life.