Why Kan’t Doc Zoe Write?

The girl in the picture has been the same girl all along – a girl in search of adventure and the life of the unconventional.

Being a doctor is a lifelong commitment.

To me, this translates to a life of imprisonment.

You see, a doctor’s life is dictated by his patients. His day isn’t totally his own.

Unfortunately, I am one who needs to be out to discover what life is out there.

Imagine the moment of realization of this in congruence. I was a first year medical student then.

Now, you would think the sensible solution was to bail out while early. Actually, that would be correct. However, life isn’t created that way. Life was made with conflicts wherein the correct answer does not necessarily mean it is also the best answer.

And so, I never quit.

And you would think I would have the guts to find my way out of this the moment I received my professional license. Still, I stayed. I figured that I wanted to make the most out of the five years I worked hard for. Many have failed in the study of medicine, and yet I made it. That must mean something.

The next few years were those I described as having lost my mojo. After what I thought was being on top of the world spelled the total opposite for me in the next couple of years. And I had to accept that the life I envisioned for myself would never come to fruition.

In other words, I was rock-bottom.

The comforting thing here is: when you’re rock-bottom, there’s no where else to go but up.

And then something really good came along.

Suddenly, I was on the tip of speedboats.
I rode dump trucks and long tail boats everyday.
I spent my afternoons or mornings at the beach when I was free.
I would play with the waves, listen to my mp3s or dance with someone who, in turn, would be dancing to their own tune in their ipod.
I would cross one point to another on a rope or try to climb a wall.
My blood would rush at the thought of a water rescue and I would be there in the middle of it.
I would clean the beach or help with a set up.
My evenings were spent going from one beach party to the next, sampling their alcohol and pulutan, and ending up with red wine with my closest friends.
That or a night of a videoke party…
…or when the night was quiet, I would read anything medical, which isn’t normal.
I would listen to patients’ complaints and I had no problem with that.
Some days would just spell snorkeling.
Other days would be spent learning photography.
And still, other days would mean talking with someone new about stuff other than my profession.
I get dirty.
I lack sleep.
I’m exhausted.
I’m drenched in rain.
I’m hot.
I’m cold.
I get blown away by the wind.
I lived with tsunami alerts.
I live among the wild.
I’m peppered with insect bites.
I slip and fall on hikes.
I get sucked by leeches on the trail.
I get squished on truck rides.
And I’m loving every second of it.
Because this is the life I have been craving for – a life of freedom.
A life on the tip of a speedboat.

This post is tagged speedboat, tarutao