Life these days.

So what does the family of a medical student do over mid semester break? Not a lot. There are many reasons for this. There is the financial aspect; our family of three must survive on the same budget as a single medical student. We have to stretch our money further, not leaving a lot for fun activities. Secondly, we have no car which makes getting around the island a little difficult, especially with a five year old. Thirdly, there are days where I don’t want to do anything but curl up with a good book on the couch and read for pleasure.


Wait, before you feel too sorry for us let me remind you that we are in The Bahamas! So what do we do all day? We have spent countless hours frolicking on the beautiful beaches of Freeport, Grand Bahamas; Making sandcastles, snorkeling, crabbing, and catching baby fish with a butterfly net. We have been to the swimming pool, conveniently located outside our front door, almost every day (sometimes more than once a day). Fishing is a favorite pass time for some members of my family members. I have been reading books that I have wanted to read for a while. And lastly, there is also the unavoidable checklist of numerous tasks to be completed in preparation of our departure, which I have listed in a previous post.

I have never experienced such lack of purpose as I have over the last few weeks. It’s a little unnerving for me. I’ve never been good at doing nothing and I expected this transition to be difficult. I did not however expect it to be so enjoyable. I have all the time that I wanted to spend with my husband and daughter. Playing video games, reading books, learning to swim and read, midnight swims under the moonlight with my husband, and showing Gabby her first shooting stars and watching her face as she lost her first tooth. These are such irreplaceable moments of pure joy. No bedtimes or worries about getting up and rushing off to class or work. It feels irresponsible and wonderful. Having this time with my family makes me feel like I am still connected to them and that even though I have to work long and hard during the semester we will have these moments to look forward to. These are our precious experiences that will forever be etched into our memories. I knew that medical school would be the most trying time in my/our life but I did not expect to experience some of the most relaxing moments of my existence. I suppose the expression work hard, play hard comes to mind.

So over the next few days I will take sometime and write a few words about what we are doing, what I am reading, what movies we are catching up on and what video games we are playing. Stay tuned...