Match

     I know this post is very late, and I didnt mean to leave y'all hanging, but a LOT has happened in the past month. Match day finally came, and as promised, it brought surprise, excitement, and tears.  

   My friends and I rode the shuttle to school so that we could have some cocktails before and after to ease the nerves without anyone having to be designated driver, which in retrospect, was an excellent idea.  I can't even describe the amount of tension and palpable anxiety we had in the room.  Everyone was so on edge.  And then the moment came.  We picked up our envelopes, and when the clock struck 9:00 AM, it was time.

   BF and I barely even started opening our envelopes when we heard commotion and screams all over the room.  But we weren't paying much attention to that.  Going into the match, I wasn't that nervous about not matching together, but about 20 minutes before we got our envelopes, the fear hit me all at once.  What if we ended up on opposite coasts?!  We finally got our envelopes open, looked at them, and breathed a sigh of relief that we ended up together in the same city.  Then we breathed another sigh of relief that we both ended up at programs we really liked.  But HOLY CRAP WE'RE MOVING ACROSS THE COUNTRY!  Then every single person in that crowded room proceeded to bombard us with questions.  It was absolutely overwhelming.

   It's only after the fact that I truly appreciate how absurd the entire tradition of match day is.  We put our lives on hold for months, having no idea where we will end up for the next chapter of our lives, so we're not able to plan ANYTHING (which is completely terrifying for a typical type-A med student).  Then in the span of 30 seconds, our entire life changes right before our eyes, and we don't have a single second to process what just happened before we have to celebrate with everyone.  

   The reality really didn't sink in until a few days later.  But once we had a few moments to really let it sink in, we became very excited. We're going to a whole new city that neither of us has ever lived in before, so it's gonna be an adventure.  And we're really excited to explore and try something new.  I've lived in California my whole life, and now I'm moving to the East Coast.  I'm gonna have to buy some real winter clothes!  Haha.  Most importantly, we ended up at hospitals in the same city (a few blocks from each other even).  And we are both at programs we loved.  So here's to new adventures! Yippeeeeeeee!!!!!