Quaint

I've been loving everything quaint these past days. :) By the end of a non-eventful day, whenever I see one of those vintage shots taken by a good artist, it calms my blood, and my cone receptors feel like jumping out of joy. A non-admirer of these things might say they all look the same. Indeed, they seem like it, but when you look at the details that differ, you will understand how each possesses a different sense of beauty.

"Every person has a story to tell." My friend, Lee-Ann, shared this wisdom to me just recently, and i think this should be the caption of my summer. It's not that I was successful in learning about the stories of different people, but that it marked my summer to be a good reminder for the rest of my life.

I've had several opportunities to learn about the life of other people this summer. My two weeks in Rome should have brought me a whole luggage of stories about different people, Spanish, Italian, Romans (? haha), Portuguese, Chinese, etc. But there was not much to tell about the people I met. No regrets, though, because the primary purpose was to learn more about the Church, and it was more than worthwhile. My one week in a seminar should have also brought me to learn about the interesting stories of the attendees. But I came home not knowing so much about them, but the little mundane things they bother about.

This week will be another opportunity to know of stories of different people. I'll be on a one-week project, Rurals Service Project. My friends and I are volunteering for a one-week project in Jaen, Nueva Ecija. Let's see how I take on the wisdom, "every person has a story to tell." And i guess, every place has a story to tell. Let's see what's their story. :)

This wisdom grows even more important as I make my way to becoming a doctor. This is essentially a profession that will allow me to get to know different people. As I read this book, The Soul of a Doctor, I realize this wisdom becomes more of a struggle to live by. The book is a compilation of essays written by doctors and med students, relating about their encounter with some of their patients, and how they realize they are lacking in human contact. By human contact, it means, listening to what the heart says, not by mere use of stethoscope, but by simply listening to what they say. That more often, what a patient says is not merely complaints of physical pain, but also their hopes of a better life. And while I admit that emotional well-being is not the primary concern of a non-psychologist/psychiatrist doctor, it amounts to so much of the person's holistic well-being.

hahah i know this is too much of getting ready for med school. I've been trying to put zest in my starting med life; I seem to have lost my vigor and excitement. But now, I think optimism is shadowing over this clueless girl, and I am ready to get ready (in my attempt to delay reality) for med school.

Med school: a whole new world, a whole lot of people to know and to hear stories from. :)

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photos taken by Livy visit her blog! it's love :)