So Long St. Maarten

American Airlines Flight 2144 started the slow turn at the top of the runway preparing for takeoff. I took my last look of Maho Beach, the brilliant blue-green ocean, and the insane tourists who insisted on standing behind the jet blasts. A few others were lined on the cinder blocks out of harms way all waving goodbye. It wasn't until this moment that it really hit me that I was leaving St. Maarten and I wasn't coming back. As happy as I am to be returning to my family, boyfriend, and friends in New England I still felt an overwhelming sadness. It took everything I had to stop myself from crying and scaring the poor gentleman sitting next to me on the plane. I kept thinking to myself "it's the end of an era! This is the end of an era" since I often reference my existence back to Friends (The One Where Ross Hugs Rachel). There will never be another time in my life where I will be living on an island with all my friends studying medicine.  No more lecture hall everyday with my 120 classmates. We weren't all going to show up at the same club or lounge and just take it over. No more living in a bubble of perfect weather. No more running across to the casino and getting free money. No more Thai dates, no more $2 beers, no more Cuban cigars, no more Carousel, no more parking wherever we felt like, no more jogs to Tahoma/Beacon Hill, no more coffee shop happy hour, no more random conversations with the Sugarcane bartenders. I  could go on and on because there are so many little things that I loved.

When you spend everyday with the same people for nearly 2 years, you can't help but start feeling like they are your family. A few months ago, a friend of mine likened our experience to "going to war together". She added that maybe it was a strange analogy, but I completely understood her. We are tossed in a foreign country in a high stress environment and we have no choice but to lean on each other to get through it. You build a bond, strong bonds with those you study with and celebrate the good times with; carry on the traditions of birthdays, Thanksgiving, 4th of July, St. Patrick's Day; you cheer each other on to get through the grueling study hours and examinations. From my own personal take on things, I never felt like school was a competition here at AUC. I felt people did a lot to help each other out whether it came to group studying, tutoring, giving tips on professors, or trading notes and files. There's nothing I want more than for my classmates to do well, succeed, and kick ass in the Step and clinicals and secure great residency spots. For those who know me well and maybe even the few of you who have read my entire blog, I am an intensely loyal and proud person. You know I love my Patriots and Celtics, Boston, Rhode Island, and now I've come to love St. Maarten,  my AUC family and all my Caribbean med schoolness. Most of us who end up here have experienced rejection, but none have let that get in the way of what we wanted to do with our lives. It's that unwavering drive and determination and then recognizing that same struggle in one another that binds us all together. We are better for it. 

I can't speak for anyone but myself, but all I have to say is I *loved* my 20 months here in St. Maarten and I can't believe this chapter of my life is coming to a close. It seemed like just yesterday that I was a firstie and the 5ths were telling me to enjoy every second I had on the island because time flies and we're only together in one place for such a short period of time. I didn't believe them at the time, but they were right. Time flies when everyday is the same and I'm going to miss everyone and everything here. No matter what I do or where I end up, I will always carry a piece of St. Maarten with me and for that I am thankful.

And now for my anthem of the last 5 days on the island (I averaged roughly 4 hours of sleep)