CHER!

Guess what I recently did?

I saw Cher in concert

AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!

I have a long history of mad love for Cher. I loved her in the Sonny and Cher show when I was a little kid, wishing on every star in the sky that I could have long swooshy hair like hers. I loved her in high school when she released albums that made sing along at top volume. I loved her in college when she starred in Moonstruck, and I even owned my own copy of the VHS recording so that I could watch the movie any time I wanted to. And, yes, I now also have it on DVD.

Such a good movie.

But, perhaps one of the biggest reasons why I love Cher is because her words helped me though a frustrating medical school interview that ultimately ended in my withdrawing an application to Northwestern Medical School.

For real.

Have a seat, this is one of my favorite stories.

Fall, 1992

I had made it through the first round of Northwestern’s application process (long form, send $$ and transcript) and was invited for an admission interview in Chicago. My mom came with me; we flew into O’hare airport, and taxied to the Westin on Miracle Mile. We felt like royalty… such a nice hotel! Morning came, and I dressed in my new interview outfit: a bright fuchsia suit jacket, white silk shirt, black skirt, black nylons and flats. I floated through the first part of the day; the tour was lovely, the students we met were nice, and I was thoroughly entranced with the school. The last part of the day was reserved for interviews, and I was one of the last ones on the schedule. I was surprised to learn that instead of a one on one arrangement, I would take part in a group interview: three interviewers questioning four candidates. I thought it odd, but didn’t think much more about it as we filed into the small room with just enough chairs for the seven of us.

I quickly learned that my first suspicions were spot on; it WAS odd. Not so much because of the group aspect, but because interviewers took turns asking the same question to each person, while the rest of us had to sit, listen, and wait our turn to answer. I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t a completely scripted and boring recitation of the exact same question to each person in succession. There was no lively banter or interaction; I wasn’t impressed. The most disappointing part of the whole event was when I realized that the interviewers wouldn’t meet my gaze when I spoke; they shuffled papers and distractedly looked around the room. I don’t think any of them actually wanted to be interviewing us, and my rose-colored view of the day faded fast.

I found a way to entertain myself, however, by listening intently to the other candidates’ responses. For the most part, they were super cheesy, and I had to stifle laughter and even sit on my hands to keep from laughing out loud.

Ok… you’re waiting for the Cher part. I’ll fast forward through the rest of the interview session and get to the final question asked of us. Here you go…

Interviewer #3: If you could have dinner with any person, alive or dead, who would it be and why? (For the record, the other questions were nonspecific like that. I had no idea HOW they were supposed to illuminate our desire for medical practice, let alone give the panel an idea of who we really were.)

I’ll paraphrase the answers for you…

Candidate A: Mother Teresa, because of the kind and compassionate person she was. I hope to be just like her someday, a kind of doctor who cares like she did.

Candidate B: A sheep herder that I met on an abroad program last year. He just seemed so cool, I’d like to go back and hang out with him.

Candidate C: Anwar Sadat’s wife. She’s dead, but she did lots of stuff for women’s rights in Egypt, and I admire her. (I’ll admit, this was a good answer).

I decided on the spot that I no longer cared if Northwesteren accepted me or not. This part of the process felt completely trivial, and I figured that if an interviewer wasn’t going to make the effort to actually INVERVIEW me, why should I worry so much about my answers?

I relaxed into my chair and settled completely into myself. 

Me: Cher.

The reaction from the panel was priceless. The name, Cher, snapped one interviewer back to consciousness, and he repeated what I’d said in the form of a followup question.

“Cher?”

Oh, it was on. I leaned forward in my chair, smiled, and continued.

“Yep, Cher. I was watching an episode of the Sally Jesse Raphael Show a little while ago, and Cher was on, and spoke about how she thought the women in her family aged backwards. Basically, the older they got, the less they cared about what others thought, and the more fun they had. I’d love to have dinner with someone who can easily be herself and not really care what others think about her.”

The room was silent, and my co-interviewees looked at me like I was crazy.

I wasn’t crazy. I was being me, which is exactly what this interview was supposed to show.

It was great. I left feeling like I had conquered the event, and enjoyed the rest of my time sightseeing in Chicago with my mom.

For the record, Northwestern waitlisted me, and I withdrew my application.

As I told you in my last blogpost, I recently turned 50. In honor of my new natal decade, I think I will take Cher’s words to heart and start aging backwards, have more fun, and give less of a damn about what others think of me.

Oh! And in case you’re wondering, I loved the concert. I’ve seen her three times now in Minneapolis, and I knew she wouldn’t disappoint me. But, unlike the other times, I bought tickets on the floor. It was SO worth it.

Maybe someday I’ll actually get to meet her and share this story in person.

A girl can dream….

XO,

MM

***********

The Takeaway:

Step out of whatever pretend box you’re stuck in and be yourself. No one can put limits on you except you.

Stop worrying so much; you’re amazing just the way you are!