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One



I marvel at the clarity that most young adults have nowadays with respect to their careers. Because well, I was an ever-confused young adult; or wait, maybe not.

I belong to a family of more or less medicos. Starting from my paternal and maternal grandparents, to my mom, dad, most maternal and paternal uncles, and aunts, we are a family of a wide array of different medical specialists. From dining table discussions about patients to some doctor-patient talk, which I used to overhear while doing my homework in my mom’s clinic; my subconscious mind had accumulated enough data to evoke the hidden medico in me. Thus, I always knew I wanted to be a doctor, a cardiologist if I can be specific.

Opting biology and reading text for the premedical entrance examination thus came naturally to me. Clearing the examination with an average rank, good enough to fetch me a college which could grant me a degree, but not as great so as to get me the top-notch colleges then followed.

“But just an MBBS isn’t enough nowadays, which speciality would you land up in, is what I am thinking.” Said my mom, who herself is a gynaecologist, and feared that I may end up being one too.

Well, with the busy lives which most medicos lead, that question could certainly be of genuine concern to any parent, I think.

“Cardiology,” I was enthusiastic enough to say.

“Cardiology! Woof! That requires super specialisation. Which means you end up spending an additional three years in your education. Which is, if you clear the exam in the first attempt. And then, emergencies, night duties, and an endless burden follows. We have seen enough of that life. I want something with which you can take care of your family and have some personal life as well,” she was thoughtful.

So you see, till now I had some idea of what I wanted to pursue but it was after this discussion that the confused young adult in me took over. Since I was an aimless nerd who though knew what she wanted to pursue, but didn’t know why she wanted to pursue that; it was an easy task for anyone to confuse me at that point.

“Dentistry is evolving very well nowadays, there are so many specialisations which have emerged from within the field itself. The number of dentists who have done their masters are quite less. You love studying, you can pursue general dentistry and then specialise in one of its fields. It’s less crowded and the work is specific and doesn’t involve emergencies either,” suggested my mom again.

Dentistry! I thought in my head. I had never been to a dentist before and didn’t know what to imagine out of it. All I remembered was my dad pulling my front two baby teeth wearing an overhead light on his forehead when I was a kid. Nevertheless, since I didn’t have any clear priorities or decisions, I ended up joining the bachelor’s course for dental surgery in Lucknow city a month later from then.

As of today, I have well-defined aims, I have a good married life and I know my priorities well. But back then I was like an aimless goat, all I knew was that I had to walk. I had no idea about the where and why. Unlike the ram or the lion, I quietly surrendered to whatever was offered to me.

Yes, I am a Capricorn (symbol: the Mountain goat) from top to toe. I don’t know what had made me so interested in the sun signs, but all I knew was that, for me, it was all in the stars!

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From the book- Is it all in the stars? 

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