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Writer's pictureRobin Ortiz, MD

Question: How can we catch a flight to destination health?

Running through the terminal only to hear “courtesy call for passengers…” I wanted to yell out, “I’m coming!” But figured beyond the futile effort, doing so would simply expel energy I needed to help me run faster while pulling my bag behind me. Don’t worry, I made it. Though my mind had been on nothing but making my flight, a few moments later, seated in 19D, it seemed my mind was still on the run. For the first time in months I decided, let it board at Gate “writers creative license” and get back on flight to bloggers paradise. Well I’ve arrived. Have you missed me? I’m home!


So what was the mind run that got me back en route? Passing Terminal B for “Blessings” and then Terminal C for “Could have…”, eventually arriving at Terminal G for “Gratitude”. Let’s revisit the concourse together…


So after finally arriving at my Gate, I was forced to gate check my bag being that this was a shuttle flight with little room in the overhead bins. I reluctantly did so with flashes from the stories I’d heard of med students arriving pre-interview when their luggage didn’t; including their interview suit! Given no choice, I handed over the bag, boarded my flight and flopped in seat 19D. With the mind continuing to run, it took the reluctance a step beyond. What if I think of it as a blessing? After all, I made it to my flight on time and this kind woman will deliver my carry on to me afterward at no cost, saving me the familiar struggle of a vertically challenged (barely 5′) girl retrieving her luggage from the overhead bin. And further, it more likely “Could have” been lost had I checked it when boarding my first flight, as it would have had to run itself from Terminal C to E faster than I had. Perhaps I “Could have” been the next pity seeking med student with a story of interviewing in my yoga pants. Although, I thought, I could also be the first medical student to shine and ace the interview using my outfit as a segue to sharing my passion for wellness and health. Instead, my luggage and I have both arrived at Gate G… Gratitude.


Any readers willing to pass this story along the way they have the feelings of fear that accompany the stories of “interviews gone wrong”? It would only make for a healthier world if we approached more very day scenarios with gratitude above fear. After all, the world is a ball of billions of perspectives; why not choose the optimistic one?


We all know that leaders and governing bodies could have taken a lesson on fear, as infamously remembered by the words of FDR. So what fear in your mind can you replace with gratitude today? And I encourage you, even if you’re in a rush to make that change, get healthier more quickly, or simply catch your own flight… A life pause to reflect on the journey en route, not only shouldn’t cost you a delay, but might get you there faster. In the meantime I’ll be at my residency interview, in suit, sharing my passion for becoming a physician that can help others do just that. And so I pose to you… How can we catch a flight to destination health?


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