About three years ago I met a girl who was much like me. She was and still is in a physician assistant (PA) program, getting through her classes, and I was and still am in a pharmacy program doing the same. While our classes eventually became completely separate, at the time we met we shared nearly every class. We had similar struggles, we studied together, and we helped each other succeed. As I learned more about her when we started dating, I realized that although a lot of our values coincided, we shared drastically different backgrounds and the challenges we faced on our own would be vastly different.

My girlfriend was a rebel. Don’t get me wrong, she’s one of the nicest girls you’ll ever meet, but coming from an Indian heritage in a family where culture and a difficult past constrained her, she broke the chains that held her back despite the opinions of others. That was lesson number one. She taught me that no matter what my reasoning may be, no matter the weight of the ball and chain that hold me down, I have the strength and choice to do what I want. It was my life to live and it was up to me to make the decisions.

My girlfriend is a doer. She’s the reason I started writing for Odyssey. She’s the reason I had enough confidence to apply for certain jobs, join organizations and explore new grounds. No matter where, when or why, she is always diving headfirst into new things and succeeding with grace. I’ve always been quite the opposite, rarely delving outside my comfort zone and only doing so after much observation. Watching her taught me to embrace my strengths and make the time to do things I would later be grateful for. Through her and the experiences I’ve undergone because of her, I have grown as an individual and a professional.

My girlfriend is a fighter. Well, not quite so literally. While she likes to leave the realm of physical combat in my hands, she is in constant strife with anxiety and the never-ending struggle that is PA school. Her ability to move forward despite the mental exhaustion, pain, and the mountain of unrelenting work that surpasses that of even my program is admirable to put it lightly. Let’s put it this way. Whenever I feel stressed or overworked, all I have to do is peak over the cubicle next to me in the library and I’ll see her not stopping for a second on some days, just doing everything step by step for hours on end. I say this with the upmost honesty; I have never met a harder worker than her.

Yes, I have a bias because I love her, but she in many ways is what I am not, and because of that I find new ways to become stronger, smarter, and more confident through her. I like to think that this goes both ways and because of that as well as many other reasons, I think we have a strong relationship. Finding happiness and the strength to do more than you could normally do on your own are what make any love strong, and I’m beyond thankful that I was able to find that through her.