Walking Catfish on Land

by Sherleen Tran

September 13th, 2021

I was born into a world of creativity and color, and my mom was my first art teacher. Despite being the breadwinner of our family of five, she always made time to spend her days off with me. Some days, it was spent doing each other’s nails and creating jewelry pieces. Other days, we would be lying in bed and pointing out imaginary pictures from the stippling of our popcorn textured ceiling. It became my second nature to view the world through an artistic lens, because even the simplest things have the potential to be created into something beautiful – whether it is in our minds or through our own hands. I immersed myself into the world of art as much as I could – anywhere from ceramics to photography to painting. It seemed impossible to love anything else more than I did with art.

As I grew older, I stumbled upon the world of science and found a new love for it. Curiosity pulled me deeper and deeper into this vast knowledge that would take lifetimes to learn. However, it meant investing more time into my classes – learning, studying, practicing. Slowly, I found myself making less time for the art projects I had started but never finished. Maybe tomorrow…maybe next weekend…maybe next time? There were periods when my body felt drained, as if it was left in the sun to dry out. I loved art and I loved science, but I couldn’t survive with one and not the other. I knew that whatever my calling would be, it would have to exist at the intersection of these two realms.

I found dental school at the intersection that I desired to find, and it was like a breath of fresh air that energized my body once more. Every time I was in the lab or sitting in lecture, I recalled the words that my dentist spoke to me the day that I shadowed him: “you wear many hats as a dentist…you may be the doctor, but you are also the artist.” It was challenging in the beginning, however. The expectations that you have as a student sit at the top of a steep learning curve that that you have to somehow magically climb. Everyday from 8 to 5 (if I was lucky enough to be done by then) would a tightly packed schedule filled with labs and lectures. By the time I would come home, it would be too late for me to process anything else school-related. I would try to review some slides, fall dead asleep, then begin the cycle again the next day. That draining feeling began creeping up on me again as the semester went by. I knew that I needed to be smarter about how I spent my time.

So I began making study guides – actually, I began illustrating study guides. What first started out as written notes transformed into pages of annotated illustrations. I wanted my notes to be easy to navigate, both for when I am studying for upcoming exams as well as for future reference. Furthermore, I wanted my notes to go beyond regurgitated lecture slides. As a kinesthetic and visual learner, I needed my study guides to encapsulate that. I needed to be able to truly understand the story behind the concepts my professors and faculty were teaching me.

I would have never thought that my study guides would be part of the intersection between art and science. I honestly enjoy the time that I spend drawing my study guides, because I can feel the learning awaken with life. With a common note taking app, I can fill a blank sheet of paper with so many colors and shapes that make sense to me. Dots begin connecting as I take the time to understand how this part of the world works.

Today I am a DS2 at the CU School of Dental Medicine. Although I am not sure what I will do after I graduate, I know that I am in the right place. The intersection has grown from the moment I stepped foot in it, and I know that it can only get bigger. Whether it be through dentistry or my classes now, I hope to explore more of this intersection that helps me thrive in life. Maybe one day it won’t just be an intersection for me. Maybe one day, I can share this new world with the ones around me.