Thoroughly Enjoying Myself

By Kayla Powell

Home-schooled, Lexington

 

I still vividly remember the application process:  Two months of wracking my brain trying to remember everything I’ve done since second grade, updating my resume, writing essays, rewriting essays, asking for letters of recommendation, and yes, considerable stress.

I remember waiting for four long months to hear if I was accepted.  And oh do I remember the joy I felt on receiving that acceptance letter.  After a prayer of thanksgiving, I jumped up and called my mom, who ironically enough was having lunch with my academic mentor.  Letting the tears of joy fall, I probably shouted, “I got in!!  I got accepted into GSP!”  Then I quickly called my dad and talked so fast it’s a wonder he understood me, and then, as any normal teenager would do, I quickly employed the speed dial on my cell phone and called all 10 of my best friends. 

When I arrived at the Bellarmine University campus in Louisville on June 15 for the five-week-long Governor’s Scholars Program, I hardly knew what to expect.  There were so many questions running through my mind, so many emotions running through me.  I was excited, eager to meet new people.  I was confused; everything felt chaotic and rushed; it was all happening so fast.  I was sad; I would definitely miss my family and friends.

I knew that this would be a good experience for me.  It’s a once-in- a- lifetime experience. I’ve never been afraid to meet new people, and I was excited that I got journalism (my first pick) for my Focus Area.  I knew I’d be experiencing new things, and making decisions that I’d never had the opportunity to make before.  I knew I’d be taking risks, and despite mixed emotions, I was ready to begin.

One of the new experiences for me was something I’d heard plenty about, but never thought I’d want to do.  My younger sister, Lorie, is 16 years old, and has known for several years that she wants to be a surgeon. In pursuing this goal, she has attended a weeklong pre-med camp for two summers in a row.  As part of this camp, she had the incredible opportunity of getting hands-on in a cadaver lab.  I had listened to her gush about this experience — genuinely happy for her, but definitely grossed out. Touching a dead body was definitely not something I ever intended to do. 

My Focus Area at GSP was Journalism and Mass Media.  As part of our work, we reported and wrote a feature story on a particular facet of the Governor’s Scholars Program.  My story was on first-time experiences, and part of my assignment was to report on the Focus Area, Biological and Environmental Issues, which included a visit to the cadaver lab.

I was surprisingly open to the idea of visiting a cadaver lab when my professor told me that I had this opportunity.  While I was definitely unsure of myself, not doing it was never an option in my mind; it would be great “color” for my story, and I wasn’t going to let this opportunity pass me by.  So I determined to eat enough — but not too much — before I went to report, and focused on preparing good interview questions.  I knew Lorie had been fine with the bodies, but she wants to be a surgeon, and I’m just a communications major.  I love people, and I want to see them whole and well and happy.       

I arrived early at the classroom where the biology students were meeting for a class period with Dr. David Porta, the professor who would be showing us the lab.  However, half the class was already there, eager for the class to begin.  Their enthusiasm and energy was soaring unleashed throughout the room.  There was chatter, laughter, and eager anticipation.  It was hard not to catch their energy, and soon I was looking forward to it, too.  Just not as much as they were.    

The moment I entered the cadaver lab, I became just as excited as the rest of the scholars.  I found myself quickly putting on rubber gloves and following a group of students over to one of the 10 bodies, and the next thing I know, I’m holding a liver!  Over the next few minutes, I had held several human organs, and I had held a human brain!  And the strangest part was that I was thoroughly enjoying myself.

Even now, I can’t help but smile when I think about how much I enjoyed doing something that I thought I’d never want to do. And that, I believe, is what the GSP experience is all about.