Las lecciones que he aprendido

Lately, I've been spending a lot of time pondering why I feel so good.  I hate admitting it, but I've started to realize the importance of taking care of myself in order to effectively learn to care for others.  I'm sure some of you are rolling your eyes at the computer right now, but I don't think I truly noticed how much I neglected myself  until I started doing just the opposite.  Since the beginning of MVC, I've been getting between 8 and 9 hours of sleep per night, eating 3 regular meals per day, and going for walks/runs at least 4 times per week.  My energy level has increased dramatically and I feel more like myself than I have in a very long time.  Like in Plato's "Allegory of the Cave," I have an urge to tell my friends who are still in the "dark" (especially those who are still in college) that they should take care of themselves because it makes a world of difference.  But then I think about how much I hated it when people tried to tell me that in the midst of my stress and anxiety, and I don't want to be a hypocrite...

I've also noticed that I've been drawing a lot on my own shortcomings in order to perform my job better.  Throughout my last semester of college, the phrase I sat with the most was "In my weakness lies my strength."  This was true for me in a lot of different scenarios, but it has become most applicable within the language barrier issue at the clinic.  I've noticed that as soon as I feel super confident in what I need to tell people in Spanish, they don't understand me.  But when I begin by explaining that "Mi acento me da pena" (essentially, "my accent embarrasses me"), people are extremely understanding.  I think this phrase triggers a type of empathy in a lot of individuals, especially the women.  Many of them are trying to learn English, but are too frustrated or ashamed to use it.  A lot of them have expressed extreme gratitude that I'm trying to understand them and make them understand me, and it becomes more of a team effort (especially in the super complicated cases that I don't really understand in any language).  I get frustrated when the doctors at the clinic have a chip on their shoulder and think they know everything, so in a way I hope that I am continually challenged to maintain a sense of humility throughout this year and beyond...