As of a few week ago, we turned in all of Chris' residency applications. After so long (years, really!) of talking about what he wanted to specialize in and where we wanted to live and a million other details, it seemed so weird and amazing and final.
Christopher has started to get interview offers, and it seems so surreal. Each time he gets an offer, I feel like my heart just might explode with pride and happiness and all sorts of emotions (even the ones that are in the freezing cold lands of Wisconsin). For every email I see come through (the offers come via email), I just think, we did that. All of our work up to this point has been for this.
Small side note: Yes, I do realize Chris is the one working hard in med-school and not me, no need to be rude and bring that to my attention. But like I said, we're a team. The past four years has included a heck of a lot of teamwork, and it's all been for this.
Every night shift where Chris didn't get to sleep and I stayed awake trying to convince myself there wasn't a serial killer hiding in my closet, that was for this. Every time his alarm went off at 3:00 AM and he had to get dressed in the dark because he wanted me to sleep. Every time he had to miss out on something fun. Every time he would come home to take me on a date, only to get called back in to work. It's like every interview that comes in is saying, hey, you did it. It was worth it. And I am so proud of us. I'm proud of Chris, I'm proud of myself, I'm proud of our marriage. We did it, and it was worth it.
There's plenty more to look forward to. Match Day (March 18th), graduation (May 20th), and starting a job (Job! Not School! YES!) in a new city with a new house and a tiny new family. But for now, I'm just savoring this season. A season of anticipation and hope, a season of seeing how all of our hard work is starting to pay off, a season having so many big things hovering, but just enjoying the now.
I'm a part of this online group of Doctors' wives, and it has members from wives of med-students all the way to wives of doctors who have been working for decades. The ones who have med-school and residency long behind them use the hashtag #itgetsbetter when they post about certain things, and it's like a reminder to those who are still early on in their journey to hang in there, it gets better.
I totally believe it gets better. I know there will be a day when Chris has a work schedule that includes a normal amount of hours and a much larger paycheck. I know there will be a day where I won't have to work if I don't want to. Where we'll be able to buy a house. Where dinner together won't seem like a luxury. So yeah, I know, it will get better.
But you know, it's also pretty good now. All of those things will be wonderful whenever they happen, but I don't need them to be happy. I'm happy now, in this season we're in. So I'm going to savor it, every last second.
