CLOUDY WITH A RAY OF HOPE

Things are coming along better than I had expected...

I had two interviews this past week.

The first one took place on October 24th with Dr. Kathleen Stokes at Frisco Pediatrics. I was nervous to meet her because she is such a brilliant doctor and is a little older, so I didn't want to say anything that would offend her or make me look like I'm just another kid of my generation. However, my nervous immediately went away as I started asking her questions. I was able to learn a lot about who is she, and the biggest thing that caught my attention was how much she loves her job. She said she feels a special connection with her patients and plans on dying in office because she cannot imagine herself doing anything else or being anywhere else. As we talked, I felt as if I knew her for years. She has a good sense of humor and is open-minded about today's generation and norms. My day started terribly, but she made everything better. At the end of the interview, she gave me a quick tour around her clinic. Her entire clinic has characters from Disney movies, providing a beautiful look overall. I have such a strong feeling about her; it's as if she is meant to be my mentor. I want to work with someone who's strict but kind, and especially loves what they do. I have set up an appointment for this Wednesday to discuss about potentially becoming my mentor. Fingers crossed, my meeting ends successfully!

My second meeting was with Dr. Qureshi at 8:30 a.m. What's funny is that the first time I arrived at the Children's Medical Center in Dallas, I was one week and fifteen minutes early. This time, despite leaving my house an hour early, I arrived fifteen minutes late due to unnecessary traffic and a call from him saying that I should hurry up because he had to be in the operating room at 9 a.m. Sometimes, I feel that the universe likes to conspire against me. Fortunately, though, I was able to conduct the interview, but I was so scared when I first walked in because he seemed strict and quite punctual. I was able to stay for a few extra minutes to finish asking him the questions I had planned to ask, and surprisingly got to see him attend a patient in a waiting room that seemed like an operation theater because he had gotten a call to sign a document. After the meeting, I didn't feel as sure as I did with Dr. Stokes about him potentially being my mentor, because he seems like he doesn't have the time for it. He is a surgeon, after all, and in the interview itself, he suggested that I focus on pursuing medical school if I determine that I want to be a doctor. The research I do not benefit me much because I will not be able to gain the experience and education required for medicine.