As I See It

By Tom Schell

As I See It is a journey of mind, body, and spirit by veterinarian, Tom Schell, DVM. Over the course of his career, adulthood, and parenthood, Dr. Schell began to question the many things in his life. What is the purpose? What are we supposed to be doing? What is the true path to health for my patients and for myself? What is death and what does it mean? Does being a Christian imply that we just go to church, or is there something more? Are we missing the point taught to us by Jesus, caught up in the perception of the person, and missing the overall message? Does spirituality go beyond what we have been taught in the Bible? Can we create change for ourselves and for others around us? In these pages, Dr. Schell relays his thoughts on a variety of topics as he pondered his own life, interacted with people, and watched over countless patients. The simple power of observation can sometimes lead us to many answers in our lives.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jun 5, 2019
• ISBN: 9781644925720

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As I See It

Tom Schell

Copyright © 2019 by Tom Schell

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

The Early Years and Unseen Purpose

Society, Children, and Their Evolution

Life and Spirituality

Health and Disease

Aging and Death

Introduction

It’s ironic. I have encountered many people over my veterinary career that seem to have struggled with finding their way in life, especially after retirement. I always thought it was odd. It was a hard concept for me to grasp as I struggled trying to find enough hours in the day to complete my tasks which I thought was my purpose. How could someone be so lost when I have too much on my plate, only dreaming of retirement some twenty-odd years down the road at the time? I’d think that individual would be enjoying life, what they had worked for, and living the dream. Or at least, that is how I thought one would see it, and I suppose that many do, living their golden years to the maximum. Well, flash forward almost a decade. Here I sit in my life, in partial retirement, asking myself the same questions, being in a position I never dreamt was possible. What is my purpose? What is the purpose? Before, I thought I had it, but really, it was an illusion created by being busy in my career and family. The career and my family defined me, made my day, and created the person that I was or thought I was at the time. Real life was passing me by as I worked, as many others do as well. Then things change, and when that career is no longer present, the kids grow up and move on, we lose our identity, or at least I have to an extent. I do suppose that there are many out there that don’t enjoy their jobs but endure the thirty years until retirement and then revel in the ability to do what they truly have wanted to do. That wasn’t me though. At the time, I may not have taken the time to truly enjoy my career, but now that things have changed, I miss it and realize how much of a part of me that it had become. Does that then define me?

I think, on many levels, it does, and therefore it is a lingering illusion, often creating anxiety within me, struggling to bring back what is no longer and maybe what is not supposed to be. It is something I have struggled with, but on another level, I have this feeling that there is something bigger out there—a greater purpose. Not just for me but for all of us. In the meantime, during this path of discovery, I have taken much time to reflect on the past twenty years of my life and career. Maybe some of this others can relate to while others may learn and take away something different.

As I look back on the past twenty-plus years of my career and life, we all have many things that we have learned. Observations really if we truly think about it. We begin to ‘see’ what truly works and what does not, helping us on the path to happiness, health, success, and just plainly enjoying life. Given my career, being involved in medicine with a passion for research, I have many observations and thoughts. Many are true, implying they are real paths to follow, while others are just theories in my own mind. In truth, most of what I have observed and discovered is not from my own thoughts but imparted on me by others from hundreds of years past to current times.

Many times, this information is available to us from others, but in small pieces, almost like a puzzle, waiting to be put together. For me, I like that challenge—figuring out that puzzle and seeing the bigger picture. For others, though, many don’t want to see the truth, see reality or just simply don’t have the time to discover and observe. Those individuals rely on others to tell them what to do and what not to do. I think this is good in the beginning, as we all need guidance for many things; however, that guidance is intended to be a nudge in the right direction, opening possibilities and the world of discovery in our minds. This then hopefully leads us to become more independent individually, seeking answers on our own rather than just relying on the word of another. I believe, in my heart, that we are each on a path in life, a path of discovery, but unfortunately, we get too caught up in the white noise that surrounds us in life. Many, including myself, have that ongoing sense of dissatisfaction on some level, which maybe a sign that we are on the wrong path on some level or that, maybe, we have more to accomplish. As I put these thoughts onto paper, I realize it as a part of my own therapy to release and share what I have discovered and observed, to help me move on, and see what lies ahead. However, I believe that these thoughts will also ring true and resonate with others, perhaps connecting on a soul level. If we do this more often—connecting on a soul level—our lives may change for the better.

The Early Years and Unseen Purpose

Some would say that life has no purpose; that things happen by coincidence. Looking back over my life, I see clearly that there is no coincidence, but more so, that we create our paths. There is, I think, a general purpose or goal for all of us to achieve in this life, but there are also sub-purposes for each of us. My life is not much different from others, but laying things out in a timeline and having a clear line of vision when looking things over, a path was laid out for me, and in the end, all I had to do was release, quit fighting the currents, and just let the tide take me where I was supposed to go. The events from my life are clear from my perspective, but some details may be missing that either I have forgotten, repressed, or maybe wasn’t privy to at the time.

High school is a time of discovery, or it should be, with the right assistance by peers. We are meant to learn and evolve, finding direction for the future in our lives. My path was chosen for me—I just didn’t realize it until I looked back. It’s interesting that, many times, we can look back and see the little pieces of puzzle that fit so closely together, taking us from one point in time to another. We don’t see them at the time but more so just see it as coincidence, a result of hard work, or because we deserve it. Although, many times it is a result of hard work, in the end, we create what is to come and what the future holds through our attitude and internal desires.

When I was in high school, a freshman specifically, our father passed away acutely from a heart attack. He was forty-two years old, in the prime of his life and career, leaving a family of seven behind to be raised. We weren’t a rich family, but more middle class and dependent on his income to keep food on the table. The situation was such that there was minimal to no life insurance and little savings to boot. This left us a family in dire need. As children in the family, we helped to make ends meet by getting jobs outside of our school work to help pay expenses and obtain the basics. There were also donations from my father’s work colleagues to assist. Somehow, as a family, we pulled it off. Our mother was a rock—solid and supportive to our needs in every way. At the time, she was the glue that held us all together. She guided us, supported us, and provided a shoulder to cry on in times of need. More often than not, we cried together.

During my sophomore year of high school, we were given the task of performing an interview of a professional in a field of our choice. I had no idea, to be honest, who I wanted to interview or even what field. I thought long and hard about it and opened the yellow pages of a phone book, leafing through the titled sections. I settled on the section for veterinarians, somehow drawn to it on a certain level. I picked one located in our town, called, and asked if I could set up an interview with one of the veterinarians on staff. I was granted a time, mid-afternoon on a Wednesday, after school had let out.

I remember the interview even to this day. The veterinarian’s office was dead quiet, not a single client in the waiting section. I checked in with the receptionist and was told to wait. After ten or so minutes, a door opened and I was greeted by a gentleman in a white lab coat motioning for me to come back into an examination room. We entered the room which contained a cold stainless-steel table in the center with green walls and no décor that I can recall. He leaned against a wall on one side of the table, closed body position, while I used the table to write on and review questions. I asked them one by one, and he answered one by one with no expansion or apparent feeling. It was a cold, very odd interview, leaving me with a feeling that this career choice must really suck, making a person that cold and unexcited. I thanked him for his time and returned home. That evening, I reviewed my questions and his responses, realizing that there was no way I could make a presentation based on this information. It left a very cold and depressing feeling within me regarding the career choice of veterinary medicine. I knew there had to be more to it than what this doctor had instilled into me.

I decided to revisit the yellow pages and the section for veterinarians, seeking another viewpoint. I contacted another office, not far from our home. The difference here was that this office was a single-doctor practice as compared to the first being a multi-doctor facility. Different concepts and potentially two different viewpoints. One was an owner, while the other was likely an employee.

I was granted an interview with the veterinarian on that coming Saturday, about 1:00 p.m. I thought that was odd, being a Saturday, but went with it, arrived on time, and introduced myself to his receptionist. She was extremely nice, very friendly, and informed me that they just finished seeing appointments and that he would be with me shortly. I waited but not for long. Down the short hallways walked a lean gentleman, maybe early fifties, dressed in a sweater and corduroy pants, no lab coat, and no stethoscope draped around his neck. He was holding a coffee mug, to which he switched hands, holding out his right hand in introduction. His name was Dr. Ronald Swanson, and his clinic was Countryside Animal Clinic. We shook hands and he led me back to his office which was located right off the reception area. He sat down by his desk and I took a seat opposite. I asked the same questions but received totally different responses. More enthusiastic, and at times, they were redirected back to me, asking my input on certain subjects. In the end, it was a good interview, enlightening me to really what the profession was about and giving me plenty of information to complete my report. This gentleman would change my life and guide me for many years to come; I just didn’t see it at the time.

It was my sophomore year at high school and I had elected to not only include basic sciences as part of my curriculum but also a class in animal behavior taught by our biology teacher. It was an interesting class and it continued to further propel me down the animal career path. I recall having an assignment in the class on observing animal behavior over time and reporting on it. As a family, we didn’t have any pets, so they were not an option, but they were a popular source for many of my classmates. I needed something different, a different species of animal to study. Luckily, in the suburbs of Chicago, we had a large chemical engineering company that had large tracts of land as part of their facility with a small herd of buffalo grazing about. I chose them as my subjects and spent time after school, sitting on my car hood, watching the herd from a distance and making observations. It was interesting to say the least, as I had never really seen a buffalo up close outside of a zoo. Truthfully, I had never really laid a hand on anything outside of the usual dog or cat. I suppose I had a somewhat limited life at that point, but then again, what can you expect for a kid growing up in suburbia? They proved to be good subject matter as I did well on that report. It was unique, according to my teacher, and I learned a lot in the process, coming out of it with a new level of respect for the bovine species.

At the time, I was working a paper route early in the morning to help bring in money and cover some expenses. Those were the days when papers were still treasured and hand-delivered, usually by the time the morning coffee was served. I came home one day after school to find a note on the kitchen counter telling me Dr. Swanson’s office had called. I was curious, picked up the phone, dialed, and was greeted by his receptionist Becky. She said that Dr. Swanson was curious if I was interested in a job position, after school, to help clean up after animals and with certain tasks in the office. It was a no-brainer and I accepted the position. I went in after school, usually about 3:00 p.m. until closing which was around 8:00 p.m. a few days a week, then every Saturday. I didn’t work Wednesdays because that was his half-day, closing around noon. I worked there for almost three years, and the amount I learned was irreplaceable. I also gained a friend in Dr. Swanson. He was aware of my father’s passing, and on a certain level, he stepped in to provide some guidance and support. We talked often about many things, and sometimes, he’d invite me to attend local veterinary talks with him in the evenings. He even took a day off, taking me down to the University of Illinois Veterinary campus, showing me around where he graduated from many years prior. He’d become one of my main mentors as I left high school pursuing college and, eventually, veterinary college. He provided support and guidance that I just didn’t have otherwise.

After high school graduation, I moved on to the Ohio State University. It was a challenge, mainly because I would be admitted as an out-of-state student, meaning much higher tuition. My mother wasn’t very happy about this as we only had a small amount of money, and likely, it would only last a year at this rate. Something called me home to Ohio.