Choices

As my son and his friends graduate this Spring there are so many emotions competing for my attention.  I am excited and happy for our son - proud of all that he has accomplished and excited to see what his future holds.  And I am thoughtful as I contemplate the age old questions that everyone asks during this time of year:

"What do you want to do for the rest of your life?" 
"Where are you going to college?"  
"What do you want to be when you grow up?" 
"How are you going to reach your goals?"

And we all have different answers to these questions - often we seek answers through the lens of our own decisions when we faced them and/or through the lens of what society deems appropriate.  

Graduate high school, attend college, get a job, get married, buy a house, have children, buy lots of stuff, retire, etc....

And for all intents and purposes, I looked through that lens and followed those dreams.  But what if we miss our God given talents by following the crowd?  What if our dreams or those of our children seem to veer off the beaten path to blaze new trails?  I suppose we started this crazy path when we chose to home school our children seven years ago.  So for our son, there is no pomp and circumstance, no four hour commencement ceremony in a civic center or school gym, and no awards banquet to boast of all his accomplishments.  And I'm glad as I hope he feels less pressure about his future.  I pray he takes the time he needs to discover who he is as a child of God and allows our Heavenly Father to direct his steps.   I pray that he knows that he was uniquely created for special purposes that God will reveal in His own time.  I hope he knows that even what may appear as a misstep will eventually lead to blessings beyond measure. And finally, I pray that I can take off the lenses of tradition and encourage the dreams of following a new trail.

What does this have to do with anatomy and physiology?  Everything!  We were fearfully and wonderfully created - not all the same - not for the same purposes - and in life there are twists and turns that we can never foresee but we can with God's strength & peace face all things knowing "that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28.

High School Graduates can never know the answers to the questions about their future (and neither can we) - but I pray that the God who loves us all will guide their steps - whether they are on traditional paths or unconventional trails.  God bless them all!

It's amazing what our bodies can do and accomplish considering that there are only 4 basic tissue types from which all our organs are made.  As I watch the Olympic Games with a severely sprained ankle, I marvel what these athletes can accomplish and I wasn't even able to step off a short wall without injuring myself.  So I watch the games and play with my microscope....and I wonder.  Can you identify where this tissue came from (what part of the body) and what tissues are present?

I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

"I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made."  These were the first words uttered in my Gross Anatomy lecture during my first year of graduate school.  I was so excited to finally be studying human anatomy! And then to have a professor stand at the front of a lecture hall before over 100 medical students and  3 graduate students and profess his faith with these simple words from Psalm 139:14 was icing on the cake.  He held a small bible and read these words, "I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made."  And to be honest, I don't remember any thing else about the lecture that first day.

But it was a dream come true.  Ever since 7th grade science, I wanted to study Biology.  I missed dissecting a frog because I was sick, but my teacher let me take it home to dissect.  There I sat - at our kitchen table, exploring the internal anatomy of a frog.  Most of my friends were disgusted by dissecting.  And maybe that's why I liked it  - I was a girl and I wasn't afraid of science.  Just an ordinary, contrary, teenager.  But that decision to like science set me on a journey that still continues today.

I enjoyed college and I was immersed in Biology at UNCW but I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with a degree in Biology.  I explored lots of different careers and was blessed to be part of a Pre-Med Club that brought in speakers - physicians, physical therapists, physicians assistants, teachers, scientists.  But it was a single class again that changed the course of my life - Anatomy and Physiology.  Up until this point, I was pretty certain that I was going to become a Physical Therapist.  I had volunteered at a hospital for a couple of summers.  I even talked with the PT Department at UNC.  But I couldn't let go of how much I enjoyed Anatomy and Physiology.  On top of that, I took a histology class that ultimately sealed the deal.  I walked by a display of post-graduate opportunities and chose a pamphlet randomly - Bowman Gray School of Medicine - because they had an Anatomy Department.  I could take Gross Anatomy!  I later found out that the professor that taught my Anatomy class at UNCW was a graduate of Bowman Gray and I am sure I was accepted in part because of his recommendation.

And so there I sat, in complete awe as my graduate career began with "I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made."  God works in amazing ways - ways that we don't always understand.  My journey to graduate school was not a straight path but I knew at that moment that I was exactly where God wanted me to be.  And as I sat there, I thought I knew where I would end up...but again God had other plans.  Even when life changed unexpectedly I found that I could, along with that beloved professor, say "I praise God, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made."