Dissection is an art.

When you think of dissecting cadavers you really start contemplating about the person in front of you: Who were they? Where are they from? How did they die? What did they do for a living? Did they leave loved ones behind?... all these questions make dissection much too personal.
I was nervous walking into the anatomy lab and seeing cardboard boxes lying on the floor. I couldn't come to terms that there was an actual person inside. We jumped right into it! Cutting the plastic bags and flipping the body over to start dissecting. Our first assignment was to dissect and explore the superficial and deep muscles of the back.
Cutting was... weird? I don't know how else to describe it. I was torn between my excitement and curiosity of the science and art the body in front of me presented and my emotions. I was surprised how easy it was for me to disassociate myself from the dead body, pick up a scalpel and cut. Not everyone was so eager (for the lack of a better word). Some stood back and thought about what we were doing - personally, I think that makes it a lot worse. For medicine you have to have a strong stomach but I think it is also important to take things for what they are: dissection is a direct method of learning the artistry of the human body. The dissection goes above and beyond what any textbook diagrams could give you. The experience counts! (except for the foul smell of formaldehyde which seeps into your clothes and hair :S ... not fun.)

All in all a great start to the dissection labs even though I am spending my saturday night there instead of going out like I would've done in undergraduate.

I guess the lab will now be my place to unwind...