From Here and Now to Infinity and Eternity: A Message to New Medical Doctors(*)

Commencement means both an end and a beginning; the end of the academic year and the beginning of the rest of your life as new physicians. For such a beginning, it is useful to view it in retrospect, from the point of view of the end, by conducting a pre-mortem on your life. Taking the existentialist (ex sistere, to stand forth) stance, each of us can be classified into one of four basic types of person, based on our characteristic space and time (or spatio-temporal) context or horizon. Our space can be limited to the “here” and our time to the “now;” or our space may extend to “infinity” and our time embark on “eternity.” In-between these poles, most have space contexts rooted in their home and work “turf” and time involving their “lifetime,” while some expand their space to include the “world” and their time to encompass “history.” From the “here and now” and “turf and lifetime” contexts, the horizons of “world and history,” and “infinity and eternity” are examined, challenging new medical doctors to realize their full potential. The new physician is exhorted not to wait for a post-mortem to define (des finitus, to set limits) his or her life. He or she should stand forth, to live, and give life. The new medical doctor is encouraged to look to the sunrise, draw strength from the sunshine, to be brave, and strong and true.