imagine 160 people (okay, so now it's technically down to 157, hopefully not still counting). that's 160 nicknames to remember, 160 birthdays to celebrate, 160 cellphone numbers to ask for. 160 separate minds, 160 distinct personalities. 160 lives all intertwined with one another from the day we first set foot in that lecture room. the number may seem intimidating; but that's because it is. even if you're all stuck in one big classroom, and even if you'd all be together for 5 long years, it's enough of a challenge to get to know all of these people, much less make real, genuine, meaningful connections with all of them.
but then, that's where the big contradiction steps in. even if it's understood that you won't click with everyone and not everyone will click with you, you all get thrown into these situations where you're *forced* to make such connections with these people, regardless of whether you're naturally capable of making such, or certain circumstances dictate that you'd be much better off leaving these things alone. and in these situations, it's pretty much get along with each other or else die trying to survive all by your lonesome.
our curriculum thrives on group dynamics; nearly everything aside from exams (oh, if only...) have to be done with 3 or more people at your side. transcriptions, dissection, histology lab, mentoring, problem-based learning, you name it, we've got a group for it. and chances are, these groups are formed on the single quantifying basis of the order of our surnames, nary taking into account the presence or possibility of chemistry between them. and since you can't really change your last name on a whim, this is how you become stuck with your forevermates, your alphabetical friends.
it's like med school is really just a big experiment in personality conditioning and social dynamics. i could practically feel the video cams focusing, watching to see whether we could all become one big happy family in ourselves, or if we're just setting ourselves up to crash and burn in our attempts at civility, taking our future in med school down with it. since that's obviously not a feasible choice, at least not for anyone who's the half-bit serious about being here, everyone finds a way to deal with the cards they're dealt. dry sarcasm is always an option, and so are apathy, ignoring or avoiding people, or maybe just keeping to yourself. again, none of these are really good options either, seeing as you're usually stuck with the same people until internship. then comes the hard part.
when you start interacting with these people, it's when you start finding out their true character. it's when you start seeing all these tiny faults and issues they have, things you can't stand now, and can't imagine standing for so many semesters. even people you thought you'd get along with, as an effect of simply spending too much time together, start showing things that turn you off.
that's not always how it should happen, though. you can also find common interests, things that can make them good companions. it's also when you get to know these people that you find that they can be really caring, responsible, and dependable. you can also learn something else important: patience. it's when you learn that all those little quirks people have don't really matter, that they don't stop them from being good people. and even if they have these irreconcilable faults that really just irk you, you have to learn to look past them and appreciate whatever good they have deep *deep* inside.
and when you can make pacts of unwavering support and togetherness throughout all upcoming trials over triple cake slice treats and chicken ala kiev, as legally and morally binding as if it were written in the presence of a judge or carved by godly bolts of lightning into stone, rather than hastily sketched on a moist table napkin with a pseudo-makeup red gel pen and signed by haggard students on a sugar high, and yet everyone else is taking it as seriously as you are, that's when you know that you can drop the "alphabetical" part and you're just left with... friends.
Currently feeling: sabog