The intensity of the program keeps growing and growing exponentially. There is a lot of work that needs to be done and not a lot of time to do it. This led to my first “all nighter” in over 3 years, not due to procrastination, but due to the fact that there was a lot of material to be studied. Even after scheduling my time and averaging less than 4 hours of sleep per night all week, I had to pull an all nighter before my Physiology test. The whole week, I felt sleep deprived, but having enough sleep is nearly impossible in any competitive summer program. Therefore, I was glad to get 8 hours of sleep Saturday night.
There were tours every day except for Thursday, and we explored countless career opportunities (including going to the Big Red school down the road for the School of Veterinary Medicine). Although all the tours were exceptional and interesting, my mind has still not changed on what I want to do- go to medical school right after I graduate from East Carolina University in 2016.
Yesterday was Saturday and we all volunteered at the Susan G. Komen race. It was an event for breast cancer survivors, and I was surprised at the support and general atmosphere of the race. Even though it was rainy, the atmosphere of the event was brighter than the sun. Everyone had a smile on their faces, helping and talking to everyone they met. I volunteered in the kid’s zone, where I was fortunate enough to guide children and even play hockey with them. They are the foundation of tomorrow’s society, and to see how supportive and affectionate they were at such a young age made me appreciate them even more.