September 1: The official start of the Year of the Right Brain

Today is really the official day of the start of my sabbatical year.

Why am I doing this? I guess that practicing medicine was not really what I have a passion for. I had discovered this within months of starting med school. However, because I had been told by my parents that I don’t usually continue with anything to completion--to the point where I have mastered something (piano lessons, voice lessone, etc), I wanted to prove them wrong for once. In order to prove this, I had to get a doctorate of some sort. Medicine, I thought, would be one of the easiest ways to achieve this in my mind--easier than a research degree.

In today’s society, that would not have been an issue. After the highly structured lives of kids in the 90’s and the glorification of over-achievers in our midst the last few decades (think Wonder Woman), we now value a life of moderation and balance.

In any case, I decided to continue with med school--just to feel like I accomplished something. Attending McGill in Montreal lend to the decision. Montreal is a great city to live in as a student: cosmopolitan with a French flair for the enjoyment of life, filled with great style, and accessible to me as a student--both financially (eating and living expenses were only a fraction of that in other major cities) and physically (I had studied in the University of British Columbia for 6 years where the campus was isolated from tempting stores and restaurants).

I loved my time in Montreal. I tell people who asked me why I stayed in med school if I really didn’t want to be a doctor and I tell them that it was a good excuse to spend time living in a great city. To this day, Montreal remains my favourite city in Canada.

Some more about my year away from working as a doctor. It is not meant to be a vacation. People who know me will know that it is impossible for me to sit around and idle away time. So I’ve set up some parameters for my year:

• This is a year to explore the creative side of me (and thus the label I have given this year). My endeavour is to explore a part of me that has not really had a chance to be cultivated. I grew up in a family where the study of science is fostered. My father is a math teacher. As a todder, I would carry around math books instead of dolls. I knew my times tables to 10 before my sixth birthday. I spent a few years of my childhood, happily gazing into jars of curious looking fetuses and biological specimens preserved in formaldehyde in the science lab just outside my father’s office. I continued on to 2 post-secondary degrees in Chemistry. The first time I visited the Louvre in Paris, I walked inside to see the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, and Nike, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, then walked right back out. After many years and museums later, I have learned to appreciate art--the exquisite older masters, to the colourful strokes of post-impressionism, to the expressive contemporary art. I really can’t draw: I tell people that I draw like a 6 year old, and that statement isn’t far wrong. Yet I feel that there is an inner artist in me. This year is a year to explore that side of me.

• I know my tendency to work hard--so to limit myself and not to end up working too much, I have this mantra: I am not allowed to work more than 5 1/2 weeks in the next 12 months. Why this number? The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario recommend that we work a minimum of 6 months over 5 years to stay competent in our profession. That works out to 5 1/2 weeks in a year. I myself have found that a long time away from medicine makes it quite difficult to return to work so I think that this is a good recommendation to adhere to.

• The one thing that I will allow to trump this year off exploring art is a good mission opportunity that comes up. I have found that I am happiest when overseas doing humanitarian work so have decided that if a good opportunity presents itself, I will not hesitate to head off once again.

• No computer games and puzzles. Here I am admitting to the world that I have an addiction problem. No, it isn’t narcotics or smokng or drinking, but I do recognize that this addiction does control my life. So this day is not only a day to mark the beginning of my year off but also the first day of my break from my addiction--cold turkey (or cold tofurky in my case). Expressing it here has an advantage. Now that it is out there, I will feel a need to stick to this.

• I will spend time this year to maximize my health. Recently, I have noticed that my bones are creaking a bit more and my joints are a bit stiffer. While regular exercise has been my routine for a long time, I will take time to increase my agility and balance.

• This is a year to spend at home. I have been travelling for work for the past 6 years, working mainly in northern Ontario. During most months, I spend more time away than in my own home. The first question that people ask when I tell them that I am taking a year off is where I plan to go. I tell them that I plan to stay in Toronto. In the past few years, I have found that Toronto has evolved into a fascinating city, filled with multiculturalism, adventurous eating, and great theatre and entertainment. Spending time at home will be like the world coming to my door.

• In addition, I’ve had home decor projects that have been in my mind as long as the 5 years that I have been living in my condo unit at Harbourfront. It is time to realize these ideas.

So here I am in the wee hours of the morning on my first day of this new beginning, resolving to have a fabulous year filled with accomplishments of a different kind.