Miss Lutitia B. Tibbetts, my piano teacher during elementary school, was nearly driven to insanity by my reluctance to practice. Despite my youthful indolence, I have since discovered that activities offering continuing personal growth through practice satisfy me most. My pursuits in music and medicine have generated this insight.

I have been a devoted musician for a decade, as an avid listener, student, performer, and, most recently, teacher. Much of my free time since middle school has been spent playing drums in jazz, rock, reggae, and funk ensembles. Fascinated by jazz and its tradition of self-development, I recognized that my aspirations were often far beyond the grasp of my abilities. However, cognizant of the advances I had made, I took to practicing furiously. Like Miles Davis, who pioneered new genres in an endless pursuit of musical fulfillment, my incremental advancements fell short of artistic bliss. Out of frustration was born my practice journal, a daily scrapbook of song ideas, routines, transcriptions, and reflections, which I used to craft my musicianship. Documented within are the arduous hours spent woodshedding to yield the desired control, independence, and technique; these developments would later outline my future objectives. This journal, in retrospect, reveals the pleasure I derive from practice with the acceptance and security that my learning process has no finish. Acknowledging the permanency of this self-directed musical development, I am patient and angst-free. My relaxation gives rise to taste and restraint. Practice becomes revitalizing and therapeutic, allowing me to further appreciate the moments of group synergy on the bandstand.

The practice and art of medicine, ever advancing with sociological, biological, and technological innovations, and subsequently offering a lifetime of challenge, appeal to me no less intensely. My introduction to medicine began at fourteen, when I joined my hometown's nationally recognized teen-operated ambulance service, Darien EMS-Post 53. While too young to drive, I became hooked on the empowering awe of saving lives. After earning my EMT certification at 16, I was increasingly challenged by the puzzle of assessing patients and taking histories; I practiced in the field by increasing my rotations, improving my rapport with patients and building confidence with each call. My efforts and leadership were rewarded as I became crew chief and later the president of the organization. I found success as president when I led by example, certainly one of the most significant life-lessons I have learned. Eager to push my abilities to the next level, I, barely eighteen, became purportedly the youngest EMT-I in the state; the EMT-I training enabled me to perform basic phlebotomy, fluid challenge, cardiac monitoring, and defibrillation. These skills I would continue to practice during summers at home.

Hungry for more medical involvement in college, I combined my recreational and medical interests by joining the college Snow Bowl Ski Patrol. I found this environment challenging in its limited resources; creativity in treatment was essential. I worked on my teaching andcommunication skills, sharing with less seasoned patrollers my experiences from Post 53. By volunteering with the patrol, I also became a better listener, an indispensible skill (incidently, one that was also fostered through musical interaction) in assessing patients' needs and concerns.

Since college, I have been working as a lab technician in a clinical medical laboratory and volunteering in the emergency room. Immersed in the institution of medicine, I have witnessed the commercialization of this profession, yet my commitment is entrenched. As with music, I appreciate medicine for the opportunity to "practice" medical art. I want to continue my path of self-actualization in the pursuit of helping others, pressing, medically and musically, to make my mind the instrument.