Hi everyone,
Every February, snowdrops rise in the distant recesses of my yard, poking through the matted leaves and twigs, their pearly petals perched atop slender stems. If you don’t look carefully, you can miss the little flowers in the gloom.
This February, there were no snowdrops. I searched for them, treading to their favorite hideaways and brushing back the ice. But the ground was hard and lifeless, and there was no hint of the young plants, who, it turns out, were biding their time beneath the ground.
This year, spring seems especially distant. The news from home and abroad leaves us frozen, day after day. More than once, I’ve wondered where to find the energy to push through.
I used to be a naive optimist, believing in the inevitability of good outcomes. But as an intensivist, I’ve learned that lives depend on my work, and as a program director, I know your professional dreams hinge on my efforts.
Last week, finally, the snowdrops pushed through the thatch, a few weeks late but welcome nevertheless, spreading light in the center of the lawn, clustered beside the receding snow, and announcing to anyone paying attention that, lest you had any doubt, spring is on its way.
Enjoy your Sunday, everyone. I’m on my way to the SRC MICU to complete my weekend on the Gold Team (and drinking extra coffee this morning to compensate for Daylight Savings Time),
Mark
P.S. What I’m reading, watching, and listening to:
- How Metrics Make Us Miserable. C. Thi Nguyen on Plain English with Derek Thompson
- Parents Tried to Shield Their Children From Vaccines. Instead They Got Measles. By Anemona Hartocollis. Photographs by Kaoly Gutierrez
- ChatGPT’s health AI has dangerous flaws, study warns. By Stephen Armstrong
- Switching the Clocks Twice a Year Isn’t Just Annoying. It’s Deadly. By Laura Prugh
- The Organized Mind By Daniel J. Levitin