The Big Move
Andrea’s big day was finally here. She had been accepted into the medical school of her dream in Boston, and was about to fly there to begin her new life. She had gotten the news of her acceptance two months ago, but had spent all that time so busy preparing for the move that she hadn’t had time to realize how nervous she really was. It wasn’t until it was time for her to get up from the plane seat that she realized her legs were shaking, her heart was racing, and her forehead was sweating.
“Keep calm!” she kept repeating to herself the whole way to her new apartment. She had worked so hard to get here, and she knew that she had nothing to be afraid of. Still, as she looked out of her new living-room window, the world outside looked much too scary to face. Having grown up on the West Coast her whole life, she was not prepared for how everything looked here. The warm, bright sun that she was so used to seeing out this time of year was nowhere to be seen. Everyone’s accents seemed completely unfamiliar, and the people even seemed taller than normal.
She decided to stay in the safety of her apartment that night and didn’t go outside until it was time for her class the following afternoon. As the professor asked some basic questions to see what level everyone was at, Andrea’s mind went completely blank. “Oh no!” she thought to herself. “I’m not even supposed to be here! Everyone knows so much more than me.” Just then, the professor pointed at her and asked her a question about the functions of the spinal cord. As frightened as she was, the answer was just blurted out of her mouth instinctively. “Impressive!” says the teacher. “You’ll do just great here.” she assured her. As the teacher walked away, one of the pesky giant ants crawled across Andrea’s desk. She quickly flicked it off the edge, and then smiled confidently.
