Body Aches [: Arielle Gallione

My palms were sweating. My heart was beating out of my chest. “When you go in, you might want to put on a mask so you don’t smell them, and make sure you are wearing your universal precautions!” I was about to see and explore inside of dead bodies. In a room full of seniors aspiring to get into the medical field, I was the lone junior, and I thought I wanted to become an architect!

The body bags were unzipped; only intensifying the smell of embalming fluid. Why was I here? I do not want to become a doctor! “Arielle, you’re going to be with us, and we’re starting on body number one. Are you ready?”

No I am not ready! I am about to open up a dead person! The flaps of the body bag were folded up, and there it was. Body number one. I was staring at an actual dead body.

Suddenly, the nerves had vanished. The butterflies had gone away. I was staring at a dead body. It was cool! I was able to apply everything I had learned in Health Occupations that year to the body I was looking at. I was able to identify almost every bone, muscle, and organ I saw. My group relied on me to identify everything, and that’s when I realized I have a gift for this! I want to help people, I want to make a difference in the world; so, why should I become...