learning

i absolutely love the easy rotations that are part of our residency.  of course, i love them primarily for the breath of fresh air (aka free time and sleep) they give, in the midst of an otherwise hectic work schedule.  but i also love the chance to learn something outside the hospital.  the truth is, i love inpatient medicine — my most likely job of choice in 2 years will be in a hospital rather than a clinic — but we get SO MUCH inpatient learning in residency that the occasional outpatient and ancillary experience is quite exciting.  especially because i am so well-rested [during these rotations] that i am able to listen and learn so much more!

last year, my easy months were first care (becoming an expert at ear infections and rashes!) and cardiology clinic (improving my skills at heart murmurs and EKGs!).  this month, i am on “development.”  in the past two weeks, i have spent time watching children receive therapy for speech delay, participating in intensive pre-school classes for kids with autism, and listening to lectures about adhd, dyslexia, and autism.  i feel like i have spent the last 15 months pretending to understand these things, whenever they were quickly mentioned at various times in the hospital, but now i finally have a grasp on them!  while observing can get boring, i am so thankful for this opportunity to learn.  in fact, it has piqued my interest so much that i have even started reading a development textbook with sincere excitement!  i’m on the road to really understanding how to assess my patients’ development in a thoughtful and meaningful way.  and i still have two weeks to learn even more!

happy friday!

seasons

moving to dallas was fun for a few reasons, one of which was the fact that dallas has seasons. i know that our friends in the northeast would beg to differ, but when you grow up in san diego (which is beautifully boring), dallas actually has something to offer when it comes to spring, summer, autumn and winter. sometimes we get lots of snow, and other times we get nothing but 107 degree days.  and in between, we revel in the crisp air of autumn or sweet smell of spring flowers.

while some people might still wonder why i love this (who could love 107 degree days?!), i know exactly why: i love change. just when i start to get weary, there’s a glimpse of something new around the corner. a fresh perspective, a new energy, a chance to start over. i love the feel of the first fall breeze after days and days of blazing sun.  i even love the feel of a hot day, because it means the prospect of wearing shorts and drinking iced tea. i love the prospect of a new apartment, clean and ready for me to move in and start fresh. i always loved the new school year — new teachers, new classrooms, new books, new activities.

in residency, we change rotations every four weeks. just a month ago, i was excited to finish up my night float month, and move on to caring for little premature babes. today, i am thankful for a really meaningful month filled with learning, and yet am itching for monday, when i start a much more restful rotation, which will give me the opportunity to learn about how children grow and develop.  and i am reminded of how thankful i am for seasons…

enjoying the breeze of change.

– court

“seasons” by nichole nordeman

every evening sky, an invitation
to trace the patterned stars
and early in july, a celebration
for freedom that is ours
and I notice You
in children’s games
in those who watch them from the shade
every drop of sun is full of fun and wonder
You are summer

and even when the trees have just surrendered
to the harvest time
forfeiting their leaves in late september
and sending us inside
still i notice You when change begins
and i am braced for colder winds
i will offer thanks for what has been and was to come
you are autumn

and everything in time and under heaven
finally falls asleep
wrapped in blankets white, all creation
shivers underneath
and still i notice you
when branches crack
and in my breath on frosted glass
even now in death, You open doors for life to enter
You are winter

and everything that’s new has bravely surfaced
teaching us to breathe
what was frozen through is newly purposed
turning all things green
so it is with You
and how You make me new
with every season’s change
and so it will be
as You are re-creating me
summer, autumn, winter, spring

3:12 pm September 6th, 1981

30 years ago i was born. i have left the twenties behind. i have entered a new era. let me recap the past 10 years for you with a post on the life that was aaron earle baldridge in his twenties.

on september 6, 2001 i was in my sophomore year at westmont college. (i had not even met courtney) i took biology II, organic chemistry, physics, multivariable calculus, and volleyball that semester 18 credit hours with three labs (wes galliher had the same exact schedule as me)

the summer of 2002 was the first summer of lifeguarding for the city of phoenix and working at the foundation for blind children. (i worked 60-80 hours a week some of those weeks)

my junior year i was an resident assistant in clark halls under a fine mentor and man mark “the rd”. (this was the year that i met courtney as she lived in the dorm room just below mine, we were just friends)

at the end of junior year courtney asked if we would date in the future, i said no. i severely sprained my left ankle and i went back to phoenix to work as a lifeguard and at the foundation for blind children.

senior year was incredibly life changing: ra again in clark halls, one of the students in my dorm died, my grandpa died, i went to costa rica, washington d.c., phoenix, oregon, san jose ca, and after graduation to boston for a month. (learned a lot this year. think i may have entered the dark night of the soul)

i enrolled at fuller theological seminary phoenix extension campus for the fall and started working at a church. the spring of 2005 took me to antigua guatemala and rio dulce guatemala for three months. my return introduced me to mission springs and the outdoor education department where i began work in the fall. (scott tolan and leah (kumpe) ellis are great travel partners)

the spring of 2006 i started talking to one courtney whitmore and the summer took me back to antigua guatemala for two more months. i went back to mission springs for the fall, got engaged to courtney and made a decision to move to dallas where courtney started medical school. (courtney, thank you for giving me a chance. i love love love you)

i enrolled at dallas theological seminary for the spring of 2007 and moved to dallas, tx.

that spring i enrolled in the alternative certification program for dallas independent school district and started that program in the summer, the same summer i got married! (total turn around time from talking to dating to engagement to marriage, 13 months)

hillcrest high school hired me to teach science for the fall of 2007 and courtney baldridge entered her second year of medical school. three years at hillcrest and ut southwestern medical school, lost my grandma (ginny), trip to the dominican republic, and the match had us knowing that residency would keep us in dallas, so we moved closer to hillcrest. (too many people taught me too much in this span, like drinking out of a fire hose)

i was offered a job to teach at the science and engineering magnet high school in dallas isd and took the position teaching ap environmental science and pre-ap biology for the fall of 2010, lost courtney’s grandpa (harry) at the beginning of 2011. in the summer of 2011 we went to ghana and guinea in west africa: africainjuly.wordpress.com

i have seen many ups and downs. we have seen God’s blessing in our lives. we have added new members to the family and lost some. we have been faithful to God’s call in our lives.

here i am. thirty trips around the sun. teacher, husband, child of God. a follower. a learner. may God grant me another ten years of His providence and blessing or may He take me to bask in His glory and worship Him forever!