I AM THANKFUL FOR... by Allie Ingram, AU CVM, Class of 2021
Some people say that time flies when you are having fun. I would argue that it flies faster in your last couple of semesters before clinical rotations. It is a year buried in subjects like pharmacology, cardiology, neurology, and other “olo- gies” that you previously did not know existed. It is also a year of shaky hands
with our first official surgeries. It is a year I am honestly thankful is almost over, and yet somehow I would not trade it for the world. Perhaps it is because clinics and graduation are just around the corner, but more than likely, despite all the stress, late nights, and headaches, it was a pretty cool year. And, I am thankful for all the moments, good and bad.
I have officially reached that point where it is easy to forget how excited I was to start veterinary school. I remember being thankful that my campus tour occurred after my entrance interview because, after the tour, I was in complete shock of Auburn’s amazing facilities and program. Now I confess that I am so thankful to have time away from that intensity. Te newness has faded and has been replaced with perpetual tiredness and occasional apathy. It is a look I recognize on my classmates’ faces, too. We pushed ourselves to the edge this year; my motto was just get through this month, then this week, then this day. We were all mentally and physically exhausted. Yet, we have come so far through it all, and I try to picture what that over-zealous, first-year Allie would think of me now. I have completed multiple spays and neuters, multiple epidurals, my first neuro- logical exam on a goat, my first Ehmer sling, and so much more. And, I have so many more firsts on the way. Te reality is that, while I may hate those long days and even longer nights it took to get to all these firsts, it is a life that very few get to experience. Tis is a passion of mine, and I get the chance to live it. I will always need to remind myself of that on tough days in school and later on in practice, but I will always be thankful for the privilege of pursuing this career.
...it is a life that
very few get to
experience.
However, I would be fooling myself to ever think I got here alone. I am perhaps more thankful for the people that helped get me here than the actual opportunity itself: my veterinary mentors who have literally and figuratively guided my shaky hands, the ones that taught me to laugh at the little things and how to hold angry cats, and the ones who made me realize this is a difficult passion to pursue, mentally, emotionally, and financially; but if I love it, I should go for it. I am thankful for all those mentors, and I hope to be one myself someday.
I am also thankful for my classmates: those who make me laugh till I cry on Friday nights, and my surgery lab partner who tells me stories and cheers every time I ligate a testicle. In addition, I thank my state of Kentucky for allowing me to pursue my dreams at a reduced cost and making me excited to return to the Bluegrass State post-graduation. And, of course, I am thankful for my family and close friends who have rooted for me since day one. I am thankful for them all.
So, regardless of any challenges that face me in my upcoming clinical year or my life in the real world, I have to remind myself of how far I have come, the amazing opportunity I’ve been given, and the support system that continues to develop around me. Our profession, like many others, faces great challenges, but we can never lose sight that, long ago, getting into veterinary medicine was the biggest challenge we faced.
Winter 2020 13
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