It’s all down hill from here, right?

When you were a kid, did you ever have a race down a really long, really steep hill?

My siblings and I did.  I’m pretty sure our goal was not necessarily to see who could make it to the bottom first, but to see who could make it to the bottom without falling.  I can remember the feeling like it was yesterday.   

Scene: Big Creek Park Trails.  Occasion: Mother’s Day hike (an annual Weyers’ family tradition). 

We’d start at the top, probably with Joshua beginning before the rest of us. 

The first few steps aren’t so bad.  Normal pace, lungs are fine.  The farther down the hill you race, the faster you pick up momentum.  The more your lungs start to burn.  Your knees throb.  You hope that you don’t hit a bump, because you know that if you do, you’re going down, and it’s gonna hurt. 

WHEW!  Made it to the bottom!  Panting, watching my siblings prance around like little deer, ready to take on another one. 

Me?  I'll just take a little breather...

Even though I’m the oldest, I probably never won.  It might be because I’m actually the slowest.  Or maybe because I’m not dumb enough to pound my lower limbs against the ground in a way that would make me win.  Or maybe it's because my lungs feel like they're going to explode 3 seconds in (exertional dyspnea anyone?).

Eh.  I still make it to the bottom, and that’s good enough for me.

Sometimes I think that participating in a quarter of medical school is like running a race down a really long hill.  It doesn’t start out too bad, but the farther you get into the quarter, the more you feel the burn.  The faster you pick up momentum, the more you fear that one small bump in the path will send you tumbling.  Sometimes, the only thing you can focus on is staying upright.  Then, somehow you magically make it to the bottom and collapse into an exhausted heap.  I might not win, but I make it to the bottom, and that's good enough for me.

I’m at the point in the semester in which I’m starting to feel a little teetery.  Just as my feet hit the ground more rapidly as I near the bottom of the hill, my mind is meeting test after test with greater frequency.  I'm getting tired, but I can't stop now.  The momentum is too great.

Oh, sweet Lord Jesus, please keep me from falling.

 “To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” -Jude 1:24-25