Moving on...

So I typed this a couple weeks ago and never finished it... so thought since I'm so delinquent on the updates I would post it anyway!!

Can't believe it's nearly the end of June. That means July 1 is right around the corner. And for anyone in academic medicine, well, July 1 is a big day.  The academic year, and therefore the entirety of our lives, revolves around July 1.  Every year at this time we say goodbye to old friends and hello to a whole new slew of residents. We all get our promotions, God willing, and move on to the next step.  Every year it's an exciting time, but it's also just a little painful.  Every year we have to say good bye to people who have helped train us into the physicians we're going to be, and we have to put on our big kid pants and step up to the new level.

This year brings a lot of changes.  Brendan graduated. After 5 years, which have been both long and short at the same time, he's moving on to fellowship.  The place stays the same, a lot of the people stay the same, but it's still a whole different ballgame.  On July 1, I move on to being a 3rd year resident. Somehow. I don't know how it has already come to that. It feels like I just started.  The transition to 3rd year is a big one because I'm suddenly a senior resident.  Somehow we all go to bed one night a junior resident taking orders and wake up the next morning in charge of things.  There's a lot of that in this whole medicine thing.  A couple of years ago already I went to bed one night a med student and woke up a doctor then just as quickly woke up a resident. Now I'm gonna be waking up a senior resident. Scary. Super, duper scary. But, just like everything, we keep moving on and scary as the next step is, you just gotta keep taking them.  Medicine is a learn by doing endeavor, so you just have to keep doing.  I'm already half done with residency, feels like it's been both the longest and shortest 2 years. I'm sure the next 2 will go even faster.  Third year will bring a lot of different growing pains. Also brings a lot of figuring out your life as fellowship applications and interviews come around at the end of 3rd year.  I start my 3rd year as the senior resident on Gyn Onc.  Me, two new oncology fellows, a new intern, and, thank goodness, an R2, who has been around the block, and who I know will do an awesome job making sure the rest of us don't totally lose it.

Anyway, that's where we are today. Just growing pains. Both good and bad. It's gonna be a good year, but a tough one.  We said good bye to our neighbors and Doggie Daycare carpool members. Wrigley may be just a little happy to see Harley go, but will be sad not to have another resident next door, great neighbors and some great help with taking care of the dog.  Said goodbye to my "work wife" as everyone calls her as Jeannie packed up the guest room (somehow all into her tiny little car) and moved south to start fellowship. So incredibly sad to see her go, but so incredibly happy and excited for her at the same time.

And so it is, things change and things move on. Can't stop it, and I guess in the end we probably wouldn't want to. So we will have some growing pains and some excitement and some tears, but I suppose all of life is like that, just gotta keep on keeping on...