Aaron Gerds, MD, is the deputy director for clinical research at Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute and associate professor at Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University.
Family gatherings at my house growing up always finished with card games. Nothing like hot buttered rum and a few hands of euchre to get you in the Midwest holiday spirit. However, when given the opportunity, I’d reach for Mille Bornes. With each hand of this French car-racing game, the goal is to be the first to collect mille bornes or “1,000 milestones” as you speed along the length of Route Nationale 7 (RN 7) from Paris to the Italian border. Thinking back on those times, I can’t help but draw parallels between this humble card game and experiences I’ve had throughout the last decade.
Many times, a career in medicine feels like a race. The outcome of any race, including automobile-based card competitions, has a lot to do with speed, or better yet, velocity. If we break it down, velocity (v) is simply change in position over time.
The variable x in this equation represents change in position — in other words, the distance traveled. This December, ASH Clinical News is marking the milestone of 10 years of publication. In the pages of this issue, we reminisce on how far we’ve come, like looking back on the scenery we have passed while on the road thus far. We also talked with past editors and collected our favorite inspirational quotes from members of the American Society of Hematology (ASH) who have been profiled in the magazine. Through these recollections and words of wisdom, we can see just how far ASH Clinical News, hematology, and our members have come.
However, milestones are more than just tools for recalling fond memories. Just as RN 7 has Roman roots with the Via Agrippa, so do milestones. Romans placed stone markers, called milia passuum, along their vast network of roads, marking every thousandth step, a distance that was approximately a mile. Just as these physical markers helped ancient travelers gauge their progress, we now use milestones as essential markers of growth, achievement, and direction. However, the true power of milestones does not lie in the preservation of memories, but the forward and upward trajectory of goal setting. We use these markers along the way to advance from what we have achieved to what we will accomplish. They help keep us on pace and on the correct path as we progress.
The other half of the velocity equation is time (t). Time is a tricky thing. It steadily marches forward, yet it can seemingly stop at times. It can be too short while being too long (like when sitting in the dentist’s chair). Before you know it, that thing you wanted to do in five years is now 10 years in the rearview mirror. No matter how time feels, the fact is that we cannot control time, although we can control what we do with it. It is our most precious resource. We can determine how we use it and who we spend it with, and those factors contribute to our legacy, which we hope will stand the test of time and serve as its own milestone.
The game of Mille Bornes is not won by speed alone because along the way there are hazards, like pneu crevés (flat tires); accidents; and limites de vitesse (speed limits); or you may run panne d’essence (out of gas). However, there are remedies — a roue de secours (spare tire) or reparations (repairs). Similarly, movement forward in one’s career requires not only velocity, but also the ability to recognize hazards, formulate an alternate plan, and get back on the road quickly. In the card game, you can spring a coup-fourré (counterthrust) using a safety like increvable (puncture proof) against your opponent’s hazard or fate in general before getting sidelined by a vulnerability. Correspondingly, next-level resilience in one’s career is having a plan lying in wait for when the next event throws us off track.
Sometimes things happen that fundamentally change the way we live, work, and play. They go beyond any level of preparedness that we can muster. Thinking back over the last decade, I can’t ignore the unimaginably massive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. No matter who you were, navigating the pandemic was beyond just playing the cards you were dealt. Those of us in medicine were especially rocked, and the pandemic will define a large portion of our careers. It is a universally shared milestone that people still reflect on today. On a text chain with a few other hematologists, this popped up recently:
“This god dam [sic] pandemic, Nicole. I gained so much weight, less exercise and our stressful jobs. For us one year in academics is like 7 regular human years …”
I often think that before the pandemic, everyone kept quiet and ran the race. This was an accepted way of life. Conversely, we now are opening up, being honest with ourselves, and are much better at recognizing when we are pushing the speed limits of our own lives. Recognition is the first step to change, and when we focus on what is important, the resulting change can boost our enjoyment of our day-to-day pursuits, decrease burnout, and make our careers more sustainable.
Reflecting on my own career journey, a highlight of the past four years has been traveling with all of you in the automobile that is ASH Clinical News. Comedian Bill Murray is credited for saying, “Life is a game, and it’s much more fun if you play it as your own game, so stay light and loose and relaxed.” Looking back over the issues of ASH Clinical News, I account how the publication has played its own game, recording many milestones along the way. Independence and thoughtful journalism have brought the issues facing hematology to your doorstep in a loose and relaxed way.
Although a public form of media, the magazine has also allowed me to pursue my own personal growth. Regularly hearing from ASH members on the issues they face has broadened my view of the field. Listening to colleagues’ stories and the many different avenues they have taken in their hematology careers has helped me gain a deeper appreciation for this community. Giving me this blank page to fill a few times a year has given me space for reflection and helped me better understand and articulate what is important to me.
I want to personally thank you for allowing ASH Clinical News to cover these stories, for picking up the pages and reading, and for letting us be part of your hematology world for the past 10 years. Now, let’s get back on the road.
Aaron Gerds, MD
Editor-in-Chief
The content of the Editor’s Corner is the opinion of the author and does not represent the official position of the American Society of Hematology unless so stated.
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