Dear Donor,

“Day by day, what you choose, what you think, and what you do is who you become.”

Heraclitus

Our lives are saturated with the jurisdiction of choices. So much so, that when you make the choice to come to medical school, you quickly learn that you will have worldly friends who dabble in Greek Philosophy in their free time. But you also learn that the decision to stand with your peers and recite the Hippocratic oath almost three months ago has continuously affected the way you think and act as future physicians, but more importantly, determines the individuals you are becoming each day.

Since my peers and I started medical school, we think nearly eight hours a day- in the classroom, at the library, and occasionally in our subconscious minds during our sleep-deprived slumbers. Our minds are constantly churning with the incessant flow of complex body structures, nerve plexuses, and muscle movements that our bodies have meticulously constructed in a functional way. And it’s been our goal to absorb and present all of the intricacies our bodies have proven themselves to be. Nevertheless, we chose to be here, working towards a common goal of investing in ourselves each day for the benefit of other people, those we haven’t met quite yet. Just as your loved ones have done for all 180 of us. Their insurmountable consideration provided us with more than just an anatomical guide, they’ve enhanced our understanding of the gift and value of humanity as a future physician, and for that, we are forever grateful.

            The value of human life is an essential understanding for a first-year medical student. We often find ourselves disillusioned in the predictability of a flashcard or textbook diagram precisely translating to the real person. Our time in the anatomy lab, however, has shown us that the beauty of humanity celebrates our differences even on an anatomical level, which repurposes the individuality that we seem to never lose. This individuality has radiated in each person we have met so far. Each person has enhanced our curiosities, giving us the opportunity to question anatomy outside the scope of our classroom. Moreover, they have created the space for us to think deeply about why we wake up each week, throw on a pair of scrubs, and walk up four numbing flights of stairs to lab. Along with, who we are working for as committed lifelong learners to this journey we have just begun. We do it for our unsung heroes, our first patients, our teachers, and all the roles your loved ones have had in our lives. Though our first meeting comes after a choice shackled in its own grief, the stories of your family- fellow mothers, fathers, grandmothers, and grandfathers carry on in full bloom, where each heartbeat and breath cradled the weight of a life so dutifully and beautifully lived. We have had the privilege to uncover these nuances every day; and thus, their lives are embedded into our stories as medical students, humanizing the complicated parts of medicine we frequently get lost in.Your loved ones make us do better every day, molding how we will one day serve all of those we haven’t met just yet.

“Day by day, what you choose, what you think, and what you do is who you become.” The future providers my classmates and I are becoming will be forever indebted to you and your loved ones. The day we recited the Hippocratic oath and received our white coat, we were reminded more times than we would’ve liked that our medical career would be a marathon. That journey could only begin with you and your family’s generous donation, and the unforgettable lessons they’ve taught us along the way. They’ve provided us with the ultimate gift of humanity: the reminder to be selfless and giving in our thoughts and actions each day, but more importantly, they’ve continued to shape us and our ambitions for many years to come. Thank you.

-A first-year medical student

A speech I wrote on behalf of my first-year medical school class at our school’s annual interfaith memorial service for the bodies donated to our anatomy lab.