Hello from Jonathan

Usually I take a walk around my suite, cook, or take a shower for my study breaks, but this time I get to do blogging! Ok so first of all I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Jonathan Fan and I'm a second year student in Health Sciences. At this point in time, I'm considering medicine [Western] as a career choice, although I also have a hidden passion for certain types of psychology. Maybe I'll end up being a health psychologist? Who knows. As for things I do, I play this funky-looking double-reed instrument called the bassoon (google is good if you've never seen it) in the Mac orchestra. It used to be something I did at a fairly high level, but now it's just a hobby. I'm also on the Mac badminton team. We didn't win this year - in fact, we lost every single one of our games. Haha. However, looking at the bright side, I got to travel to a few different Ontario universities and being on the team forced me to stay fit. On that note, and since Raman mentioned weightlifting and recommended we hit up the gym during our exam period, I'll admit that I've been doing quite a bit of that lately. I'm very fidgity and need to channel my restless energy into something, otherwise I can't concentrate. Also, I've decided to try and gain as much weight as possible in preparation for India, especially the trek, where we'll be eating one powerbar per day.... :( Okay, so another thing you should know about me, and what I usually tell people soon after meeting them, is that I'm from Vancouver. It's.... not that that fact is a particularly striking thing to remember me by, but it's important to my sense of self. Please don't think I'm weird. Living far away from home is a really big thing that I think about almost every day. Why? It's not that I get homesick, but just that the decision to come to Mac was entirely my own. Therefore, depending on the good things/bad things that happen to me here, I'm in the constant process of re-evaluating whether or not it was the correct decision. When things go well, I'm happy with my decision; I only really get homesick when I'm having a miserable time, which, thankfully, hasn't happened too often. Nevertheless, it's impossible to say if coming to Mac really was the right decision (I think I could have done very well at UBC) . The decision was mine, though, and that's what's important. As for why I decided to come to Mac, there were two driving factors: (a) getting away from my parents and (b) it was a growth choice. What do I mean by growth choice? Quite simply, when given, it's the option that you think will be harder, but more rewarding in the end. I gave up the support of parents and the luxuries of homecooked meals and idyllic weather for what I thought would make me a more rounded person in the long run. According to the humanists, striving to make growth choices is one of the ways to achieve self-actualization. This is an interesting justification to my otherwise seemingly irrational choice, although I'll admit that self-actualization wasn't one of the reasons I came to Mac. Okay so back on track, clearly I enjoyed my personality psychology class a little too much. What I'm trying to get at is the biggest reason I chose SIHI over other overseas trips is that it presented more potential for growth. A friend of a friend reported it to be life-changing. I'm kind of embarrassed to say, but I admit I wasn't piqued by Indian culture or alternate forms of medicine (although I am excited about learning about these things now). It was the growth choice alone and in itself that made me choose SIHI. However, I'm still a bit apprehensive at the moment. I know the trip will be great, but will it be life-changing? There's no way to guarantee that. After all, the trip may have been life-changing to the person who recommended it, but will it be for me? Experiences can be totally different, and so can our interpretation of those experiences. My only consolance is that if I come back disappointed with the trip, maybe my experience will take on a new meaning later on. Perhaps I shouldn't ruminate on this. I'm really excited to meet you all, and despite all the uncertainty, I'm sure it will be fantastic trip! I'm greatly looking forward to it.

- Jonathan Fan