It was the night before our friend’s big Halloween party, and per usual, I was scrambling to get our costumes together. Jackie and I had just spent over an hour looking for antlers to complete her costume. Being the quirky vet students that we are, we had planned punny animal costumes. I would be ‘holy cow’ and Jackie was going to be ‘oh deer.’ In our haste to find some last minute items, we had forgotten to pick up a sewing kit. It wasn’t until we got back home that I realized that we had no way to attach the felt letters to Jackie’s top. I let out a sigh of frustration, knowing that I would have to run out again.
“I have an idea!” Jackie said. “Do you have your surgical kit?”
“Of course!” I said before retrieving my suture and needle drivers.
Before I had a moment to process what was happening, Jackie had begun to ‘perform surgery’ on her top. Using the suture as if it were thread she used a simple interrupted pattern to attach the felt letters to the shirt. I was so impressed by her ingenuity and resourcefulness. We took turns suturing the felt in place and after fifteen minutes, the costume was complete! We were pleased with the fact that our work could have passed for that of a professional seamstress.
It’s always exciting to be able to apply our skills in new and unique ways. Not only did we get to make our own wicked costumes, we got to practice our suturing skills and had an awesome story to share with our non-veterinary friends.
