Successes and Losses

Hey all,
As many of you have seen, I have been involved in the long arduous process of getting into medical school. Well here's an update: I got into the Joint Medical Program at UC Berkeley/UCSF. I am super excited as this was my first choice and the program offers pretty much everything I wanted out of my education: public health focus/social justice focus, the chance to live in beautiful Berkeley/stay in teh Bay Area with friends and family, and a MD from UCSF!!!

Also, just secured an awesome house in Berktown, walking distance from everything in a beautiful neighborhood. And so it seems as though life is good...

But alas, there is always the bittersweet, and as many of you who are close to me may know, our family has been through quite a few medica/health problems these last 6 or 7 months. We as a family continue to survive and try to keep our spirits strong and our faith constant, but this is very hard given how quickly we have been bombarded by one catastrophe after another.

I myself have had a few stumbles along the way too, but have been fortunate enough to be in good health, and also I had an amazing travel experience in Europe for two weeks, greatly improved by a rampant icelandic volcano disrupting airspace.

This is to be a short post as I am not really in the mood to dredge up specifics of what has been going on, but for now let me leave you hopeful:

I am finaly enroute to accomplishing my hearts desire of becoming a consciencious doctor who will someday go on to affect positive change in this world. I have been tempered in the toils of hard work, and weathered through multiple storms of medical catastrophes, financial woes, and all sorts of heart wrenching obstacles, yet I continue to stand strong and will continue to move forward in life. There is only this time now to continue to progress towards that life I have been dreaming of. I am still quite worried about what tomorrow will bring, or how I will be able to face the challenges I am currently facing, but I know that I have the best social support group of friends in the world, and I have an amazingly loving God watching over me and helping me through all things.

Blessings and Love,
Michael