“A”

…is for “3rd Anatomy exam grade”!

96.8

Not only continued satisfaction…a kind of relief.  Confession: when you take a class for the third time every minor success becomes something to be cherished.

Autumn Sketch

This morning started off beautifully.  I slept in blissfully until 7:15am and then arose to cereal and coffee with my parents in the clear, pale autumn light.  They both left for work shortly between 8:00-8:30, and I anticipated that I would have until 9:00 for private time.  Usually, I spend several hours on Friday morning in open lab for Anatomy, so I thought I would relax, play the piano, drink some more coffee, maybe study leisurely.  I have always enjoyed playing the piano alone, bathed in light…clear morning, heavy afternoon, slanting evening…each possesses its own loveliness.  My sister recently gave me a piece of music she composed, Autumn Sketch, that I thought would create a beautiful soundtrack to this morning.

Halfway through playing the song, reflected in the glossy black piano, I saw my grandparents making their way up to our front door.  I confess, I groaned inwardly.  So early!  I thought I would have at least until 9:00!  I saw my private time evaporating, to be replaced by listening to other people’s conversations, having to answer questions about where things were, having to allay repeated anxieties about whether any help around the house could be offered, etc.

My grandparents had scarcely arrived when the workmen also showed up.  8:40, and all hope of a quiet, private morning splintered to bits.

It occurred to me that I will never have a private morning in this house again.  Although the workmen will be completely done soon that means my grandparents will move into the addition.  With their move I will most likely never again be able to play the piano in contented solitude.  If I play the piano I will also have to endure my grandmother’s repeated praises, something that makes me uncomfortable.

I am not angry about this.  My selfish being is adult enough to recognize that the addition and my grandparents’ move is the best thing for everyone.  If we had not built the addition, my parents would probably have sold that house and moved to a place where my grandparents could have lived with us.  That, in my opinion, would have been decidedly worse…being stripped of all familiarity in a home.

Instead, I am wistful and wondering if and when I will ever again feel perfectly at peace and content in a home.

4th

Zach and I have been dating for four years.  Sometimes this sounds like a lot, sometimes a little (often based on who I’m talking to.)  It calculates out to about 1/6 of my life: not an overwhelming fraction, but definitely significant.   As with most areas of my life, I sometimes wish our relationship farther along than it is, and sometimes I am content with it.  Above all, I am very thankful for Zach and the special relationship we have.

As I wait to hear back from Azusa Pacific regarding my acceptance, I have been contemplating the strange, duality of ease and uncertainty in which I live right now.  I am at ease in the comfort of my parents’ home, taking my prerequisites a bit at a time, and working as a 1st Grade Aide (neither stressful nor time-consuming.)  I am uncertain because I have plans for the future, I have been working towards those goals, and I am anxious to achieve them.

In my mind, life will be drastically different a year from now, both with regard to academic/professional pursuits and living situations.  I fervently hope to be enrolled full-time in the S.C.A.N. program, and if I am that will necessitate my move to Southern California once again.  While this sounds exciting to me, I also have to keep reminding myself that it will be hard.  It will be full-time, difficult study.

I often compare myself to other friends, who seem so much more settled and “put-together”.  They live on their own, they have “real” jobs, they’ve moved on – whereas I feel stuck in a strange transition.

…And I just looked at the beautiful pink roses and purple daisies I  received from Zach today and felt a lovely peace.  It is good to be reminded that I am loved.

Fantasy

If I had my druthers I’d be soaking in an old-fashioned claw-foot tub, swathed in bubbles, eating fine chocolates from some high-quality confisserie, and sipping sweet dessert wine.  Flickering candles and the smell of lavender might play a part, but aren’t absolutely necessary for my happiness.  As things stand, I’m sitting on my bed in my messy room dreading the amount of studying I have to do for next week’s exam, wistfully looking at my friends’ facebook profiles, and wondering dolefully if I will ever be better at staying in touch with people.

Grad School

There were more pieces to that graduate application than I originally thought.  Initially, I assumed I needed to submit the online application and three references.  However, in addition to the online application (which was only an application for general admission into graduate studies at APU) there was also a nursing-specific graduate application to be filled out by hand and mailed in.  Also, an official undergraduate transcript needed to be sent (to prove I really do have a BA.)  I was able to take care of mailing the nursing application and the transcript request form very quickly (and my official transcript was also sent out very quickly.)   The last straggler to arrive was my third reference, but I am pleased to announce that as of this morning all parts of my application have arrived at APU!  Now the waiting begins.

“A”

…is for “second Anatomy exam grade”!

I got a 95.5!

Continued satisfaction.

Autumn Angels Gather Here

I love the necessary intimacy of autumn: “It’s cold outside!  So let’s gather close together in a warm home.”  This weekend has been a sedate parade of autumnal delights, beginning with the arrival of my sister Thursday evening and the arrival of my boyfriend on Friday evening.  Saturday heralded a trip to the pumpkin patch, where my mom, sister, boyfriend, and myself selected several excellent pumpkins.  Later, after a slow, sunny afternoon spent sipping warm Starbucks drinks, driving by fields and running errands, we ate the most delicious of autumnal feasts.  The menu included ham with glazed maple pears, butternut squash soup, fried potatoes with paprika, garlic, and basil, and a salad, of course.  For dessert we savored Mom’s homemade apple crisp, made from apples acquired earlier at the fruit stall by the pumpkin patch.  My boyfriend and I took an evening walk, enjoying the twilight colors and gathering colorful fallen leaves.  It was a beautiful, precious time and I am a bit wistful as I think of returning to the cycle of everyday life tomorrow.

Application

Grad School Application = submitted

Here’s hoping to someday be a student in the APU S.C.A.N. program!

“A”

…is for “first Anatomy exam grade”.

I got a 96.8!

Satisfaction.

Currently Memorizing

ANATOMICAL TERMS

Cephalic = head

Cranial = skull

Nasal = nose

Buccal = Cheek

Aurical = ear

Ocular = eye

Oral = mouth

Cervical = neck

Thoracic = chest

Mammary = breast

Axillary = armpit

Acromial = shoulder

Brachial = upper arm closest to trunk

Antebrachial = forearm

Antecubital = front of elbow

Carpal = wrist

Manual = hand

Palmar = palm

Abdominal = abdomen

Pelvic = pelvix

Coxal = hip

Pubic = anterior pelvis

Inguinal = groin

Lumbar = lower back

Gluteal = buttock

Femoral = thigh

Patellar = knee

Popliteal = back of knee

Crural = leg from knee to ankle

Sural = calf

Tarsal = ankle

Pedal = foot

Plantar = sole of foot

Calcaneal = heel

Digital/Phalangeal = fingers/toes

ANATOMICAL DIRECTIONS

Superior = above (toward head)

Inferior = below (toward feet)

Cephalic/Cranial = toward head

Anterior/Ventral = near the front of the body (belly side)

Posterior/Dorsal – near the back of the body

Medial = toward the midline

Lateral = away from the midline

Ipsilateral = on the same side of the body

Contralateral = on the opposite side of body

Proximal = near the point of attachment (limbs)

Distal = far from the point of attachment (limbs)

Superficial = toward the surface of the body or organ

Deep = away from the surface of the body or organ