Veni, Vidi, Vici

In the coming weeks, there are lots of decisions to be made about my future. Many of those decisions are tied intimately with me actually passing USMLE Step 2, which I took last Thursday (1/21/10). I spent nine hours at the testing center answering 352 multiple choice questions in about a minute and twelve seconds each; and the whole time, I kept hoping my mom was continuing to recover and hoping that I could pull this off - that I could pass and bring joy and RELIEF to her and to many family and friends who have been rooting for me through this whole struggle.

The last few months have been particularly challenging, even within the scope of the last almost four years of struggle through medical school. I wouldn't want to go through all this again, but now as the light at the end of the tunnel is growing stronger and I feel more like a "Doctor" each day, I feel a renewed sense of vigor and excitement that there are so many possibilities that await in the near future. I have been humbled and have experienced failure - and yet, here I am, still standing on the other side. And I freely admit that I stand because there have been many along the way who have helped pick me up when I have fallen and felt like giving up.

Granted, I am not out of the woods yet. But I take solace in two Bible passages that I feel are worth sharing today:

"Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." -Romans 12:12
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Phillippians 4:13

I am not always constant in prayer, but I continue to work on it. And I continue to hope that we will be victorious. It does take a village to raise a kid and to support him through life's trials. I truly believe we weren't meant to go through this life alone, trying to overcome challenges by ourselves. At the very least, the Lord will always be there to carry us and make us strong enough to handle the situation at hand. We should all be there for each other, also. Together, we can and will conquer all obstacles.