No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less…any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind…

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I’ve heard this suggested before though: every man is an island. It is the bridges that we build that count.

I know personally for me, it’s been a massive struggle in the 5th year of the Medical course. As a generation, we are busier than ever, with multiple commitments and the rise of personal transportation removing previous barriers to opportunities that we once had. And the love of experience and personal growth has meant that we are willing to travel further (and spend time getting there).

The drive to Hospital takes half an hour either way, which is 1 hour in total of my 24. 5 of those hours are allocated to sleep. 2 to eating. 8 to Hospital work, and 1 to whatever other travel I have to do during the day. I’m not quite sure where the other 7 hours go, but I know that there are hats that I have to put on during the week.

That musician hat.

The blogging hat.

The studying hat.

And when our Hospital timetables don’t facilitate time spent together studying or in lectures, it becomes really easy to lose touch of the people we’re closest to.

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And for the first time, intention is more important than ever. I need to intentionally set time aside for the things that are important to me.

Whimsy isn’t necessarily an option anymore.

So for me (and maybe for you too), I’ve had to actually make building bridges a priority.