Doctor, Anyone?

(Leslie -anesthesiologist; Jen - surgeon; Ingle - nephrologist; Han - infectious disease specialist)

Almost ten years ago to the day, I received a call from Momma Bean saying, "I think I've found a roommate for you." I had been roommateless for several months because Momma Bean had gotten married. In the meantime, God stepped in and made sure that Momma Bean was appointed the task of being a Big Sis to Jen, who was moving from DFW to the Hub City to go to med school.

I met Jen and Momma Bean for lunch and then showed her the apartment. It was a tough sale because Jen was worried that her furniture was too big for the master bedroom. We somehow convinced her that it would fit (or that we'd make it fit), and she became my roommate for the next two years.

During that time, she more than repaid me for offering her a place to live. I needed a place to stay for six weeks during the summer of 1999 while I interned in Fort Worth. I couldn't find an affordable furnished apartment to save my life. It was at that point that Jen stepped in and offered for me to stay with her aunt. She hadn't even spoken to her aunt about the possibility, but she was sure that it would be okay. Luckily for me, it was. And that's how I had the awesome opportunity to get to know Aunt Nancy.

In 2000, Jen and I went our separate ways; I moved here to start my job, and she moved to El Paso to finish school. From there, she moved to California for her residency. And as of June 30, 2008, she has finally finished all of her schooling, her residency, and a fellowship in breast surgery in San Francisco. It has been amazing to see Jen persevere through a career path that has been extremely demanding. Some people say they have worked 100 hours a week, but she truly has. More times than I wished she could count.

This weekend, she made her way back to Texas for a baby shower thrown in her honor. Her former classmates threw the shower, and it was a walk down memory lane sitting in the same room with these gals that used to converge in our apartment every Friday and Saturday night before they went out to destress from the weight of all their heavy-hitting weekday classes and labs. They are brilliant gals who stand out in each of their fields.

Jen's little girl will be making her debut around my birthday in October, so I am super excited. I only hope that her family, who all live here, will be able to lure her back to live in Texas at some point.