I can honestly say that I haven't felt this relaxed in at least five years. I am at a strange and wonderful phase of transition in my life which will not last long. I wrapped up my Arts & Sciences degree at McMaster less than a month ago, and will be starting medical school at McMaster in late August. This "in between" period involves little pressure and few responsibilities. As a result, I've been able to shape this summer to my liking. First I worked with the Census for 1.5 months, then vacationed in Colorado with my mom, followed by a short First Aid course (required by Mac Med) that ended today.
Now I'm packing my bags for Trois Pistoles, a tiny town in rural Quebec, to complete the "Explore" program organized by the government. The stated goal is to learn French, but my personal goal is to enjoy myself and make new friends. I'm comforted by the fact that I already know my room-mate: Daniel Carens-Nedelsky.
After 5 weeks of Explore, I have a couple weeks before the grind of medical school begins. Mac is unique amongst Ontario medical schools in that it adopts an accelerated, 3 year curriculum. That means that summer vacations are shortened to only 1 week! They also try to model their education on problem based learning, so I should be meeting patients as early as September. In many ways I think that "Mac Med", as it is called, will be a lot like my Arts & Sci program; surrounded by many smart people who are passionate about different interests. Plus, Mac is based on "small group learning", similar to the Inquiry courses of Arts & Sci.
My grandmother, three uncles, parents, and sister are on their way right now to celebrate my birthday, which was on the 27th. So I better go. But I'll be back next week, writing from Trois Pistoles!
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