Pre-med Jacket. Mar 28/22
Attending the University of Windsor, being somewhat naïve, I planned to enter medical school- with absolutely no idea how difficult that would be.
When I was growing up in London, I was always impressed with the purple and white jackets worn by the University of Western Ontario students. This stayed with me. It had to be felt cloth jacket that went to the waist. On the left arm it had the year of expected graduation and on the back, under Western, was the area of study: example Engineering Law Science Dentistry were the most common.
My plan was to complete the credit courses that would allow me to apply to medical school.
My jacket had the colours of the University of Windsor…… blue with gold or yellow flashing. On the back, it said University Windsor, and underneath is proclaimed “Pre-Med”.
Looking back it was embarrassing and reflective of quite an immature person. It would be akin to University Windsor with “Pre-Moon landing Astronaut” – because realistically it was so far out of reach and possibly unobtainable.
However, I did love that jacket and I remember exactly where I lost it.
After finishing up the academic year at the university I went straight to work for the summer. I had a job in the field department at Green Giant Canada. My job in the spring was driving a tractor to get the fields ready for planting. The shifts started at 6 AM ended at 6 PM or the opposite at 6 PM to 6 AM.
One cool spring day I wore my jacket to work but as the sun warmed me up, I took off my jacket and hung it up on a tree at the edge of the field. At the end of my shift, I forgot to retrieve it.
As the weather was warming, I forgot all about it until several weeks later, when I went back to look for it.
Of course, it was gone. The jacket was now out of my life, and I realized it was probably pretty silly advertising my dreams on the back of my coat for all to see.
I was only 17 years old at the time, idealistic but not too realistic.
I should’ve been embarrassed, but I really never was.