The Reality of a White Coat

Picture this. Pink heels. Vintage glam top. Black pencil skirt. Big smile. I can hardly contain the excitement that is pulsing through my veins. I am at the coveted white coat ceremony at the University of Utah for the College of Pharmacy for the PharmD class of 2018. I am sitting next to my new colleagues. They call my name and "coat me". I am officially a member of the profession of pharmacy. Dreams do come true. There is nothing that will probably ever mask the feeling of pure joy that I felt that day. Thats what the average person thinks pharmacy is. White coat. Scowl behind the counter. Counting pills by fives. Cash the big check. But #reallife is four to six years of pain. Extremely interesting pain. But so much more than that. It's patient safety, monitoring, patient interactions, learning everything about the body and how drugs are incredible. Ever since I was inducted into the profession, its been hard work. My hobbies consist of pharmacy school. Medicinal chemistry. Pathophysiology. and oh working at the pharmacy. But as hard as each day and the material is---I am still in love. In love as the first day, I read that little me had been accepted into a top 10 pharmacy program. Everything is interesting and makes my world come alive. All I can say is that this adventure that I have started will hopefully never end. I love being an intern pharmacist and learning about pharmacy. I can't wait to have the White coat. Smile behind the counter. PharmD. Counting pills by fives. Getting to know patients and tailor to their needs. Only 3 1/2 more years. #lifeofaP1 Peace and blessings!

Ahhh...Sunday

Ahhh... Sundays just breathe fresh air into my week. I have the opportunity not only to recharge my batteries at church but also I get time to think. I get time to read from the scriptures and inspired church magazines. I get to dress up in my red high heels! (Fun fact about Kyleigh... I love to dress up! Especially, in heels!) I got to eat dinner with some of my favorite people! But that is not even the best part! My little college town in warming up! Maybe it decided that it was getting close to spring break so the weather should permit "spring break" activities. I also went to visit some of my closest friends. They are the parents of someone very dear to me. I always feel like part of the family when I am there. Days like this remind me why I love life! GO SUNDAYS!

College Life from the Perspective of a Chemistry Major

Wake up. Shower. Get ready. Grab a granola bar as you run out the door. The parking lot is packed and there is only 10 minutes before Organic Chemistry starts in room 214. I watch as my professor demonstrates bonds stretching as he break dances for the class. In o chem you learn things like, "Microwaves are actually less dangerous than the waves that humans emit. Hence, hugging poses more of a danger to your health than microwaves." When I walk into Calc II and notice something different about my usually dry professor. It's not him. I find a dashing young man in front of the class with humor that you usually find in stand up comedy. Then on to human anatomy. My professor races over 45 slides in an hour and a half. My hand starts throbbing but I press on. Finally, when I get home, my head is spinning with all the new knowledge I have acquired. I start thinking about how my arm (bracial) hurts and how hugging poses dangers to my health. Studying science makes you notice extremely random and fun facts about life. I think it has made me realize the true nerd I am.

2011: the Year of the Sandwich

BOOM! BOOM! HONK! (Applause) You can hear the sounds of 2012 ringing in. You can see darling couples sneaking a smooch right at 12:00! There are oohs and ahhs heard all around as the sparkling ball drops when the clock strikes midnight. Goodbye 2011! You were wonderful! I had so many experiences and I learned so much that it is hard to believe that you can actually fit that much life in a year! Yes, there were major roadblocks and heartaches, but there were also some of the sweetest moments that I will remember as long as I shall live. 2011 was definitely a sandwich year. The first six months were some of the happiest months of my life. They were also life changing months. I fell in love for the first time. It is hard to believe what can happen in such a short time. The next three months were some of the darkest days in my history. I was heartbroken, hurt, lost and broken. It was painful. I don't think I have ever felt that lost in my whole life. Finally, September rolled around to save my life. When you meet people, you have no idea what they will bring to your life. It doesn't even have to be romance, mine wasn't.... It was a long awaited friendship. It just has to be a spark. The spark that helped me to rekindle the flame of life within me is something that you probably wouldn't expect. She may only be five feet tall, but her heart is much bigger than that. She brought the fun back into my life. She showed me how to put the past, however wonderful it may seem, behind and search for a brighter future. She helped me to find myself again. So I would say that 2011 was a sandwich year. Great! dark... Great! As I thought about my New Year's Resolutions, I decided that most of all, I just want to love life and live it how it is meant to be lived!

Today, some of you may be unaware.... is a national holiday! It is my birthday! I finally hit the BIG 20!! I had 52 people wish me Happy Birthday (if you include the nice man at Bath and Body Works). 41 Facebook posts and 10 text messages and 1 phone call! It was a magical day! First, I got to sleep in, which I love! Second, I got everything I possibly imagined! The only thing missing was a love letter from my handsome missionary. I felt like a princess! And yes, I am 20 years old and I still want to feel like a princess. I was wearing LARGE peacock earrings, and brand new rain boots! YAY! We drove 2 1/2 hours to go shopping with my best friend in the whole world. Fun fact about me, I LOVE shopping. I consider it an art for two reasons. One, not all people are willing or capable of buying a decent outfit when confronted with the challenge. Two, you never just walk into a store and "the shirt" magically appears! It is a constant search for the darling fit, plus great price. Not all people are cut out to be shoppers. I shopped all day! I swear the air in the mall (even outdoor ones) gives me an adrenaline rush! It is different than regular run of the mill Walmart air. I love everything about the city, the people, the restaurants, the shopping and the lights! My daily activities consisted mainly of shopping til I drop and one round of the Cupid Shuffle in the parking lot of Best Buy. If you have never done the Cupid Shuffle, you are deprived! So in short, I hope that everyone celebrated the National Holiday on Dec 27! :)

Holding On to What I Haven't Got

What has been on my mind lately?? Well... the concept of wanting something that you cannot have. Everyone, especially me, seems to fall into the terrible mess of not only wanting things you can't have, but also legitimately needing things you can't have. If you are a natural blonde, well, you would rather be brunette. If that hair is naturally curly, well, you wished it was straight as a board. It seems like the things that I think will make me the very happiest are always just barely out of my grasp. The most quoted and favorite expression of all mankind is, "When I have ________ I will be happy." When I am rich, older, moved out, graduated or married I will be happy. How many of us are living in the present? Do we live each day like it is our last? Or are we constantly focused on what could be and not what really is. Be happy with who you are. Live for today. Don't think about what you can't have and what your life will be like 10 years from now. Love life. Today. There is the greatest line in a song that perfectly describes this phenomenon. It is by Linkin Park called Waiting for the End:
All I wanna do
Is trade this life for something new
Holding on to what I haven't got

Love

I am only 19 years old. I want you to know that it is possible to be completely in love with someone that young. I have always been a skeptic of romance and falling in love. It is something that everyone dreams about but I believe not all truly find it. I believe that I have truly found it. It is not infatuation like all of my celebrity crushes. This feeling isn't one that I have ever had before. It's new and refreshing. It isn't merely a crush or a physical attraction. What I am in is serious business. It is better than anything I have ever seen in a movie kind of love. I have had the best 6 months of my life. I never had any idea that I could be this happy. I am complete. Every other relationship that I have ever been in, I have had to compromise. My current relationship I can completely see myself being with him forever. We can talk for hours and laugh until it hurts. I have never wanted to be with someone this much in my entire life. I can completely be myself and I know that he loves me unconditionally. And now my heart is broken. The love of my life left today to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in New York, New York. He is only gone for two years but I know that it is going to be a struggle everyday. I never knew that I could be this in love with someone. My biggest comfort is that I know that he is where he needs to be and so am I.