studEnt voiCE

JamEson mannix ’21

The Son also Rises

The scholarly publication Academic Emergency Medicine, the official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, is the place to read up on such topics as, say, cervical spine motion restriction after blunt trauma.

It’s also the place to learn about what it’s like to be the child of an emergency medicine doctor, thanks to a witty, reflective essay contributed by Jameson Mannix ’21. He wrote the piece last spring and submitted it to the journal; two weeks later, he received an email letting him know it had been accepted for publication. With permission of Academic Emergency Medicine, we are reprinting Jameson’s essay here.

Being the child of an emergency medicine (EM) doctor means a lot of unappetizing dinner conversations. The nauseating remarks are usually casually weaved into common discourse, with a disturbing disregard for the family’s digestion. Perhaps a family member mentions an upcoming dental appointment—an innocent remark—which somehow elicits from my mother the gruesome suctioning noise that occurred when she replaced her patient’s displaced tooth in its socket. The conversations are a great way to make sure no one overeats.

Being the child of an EM doctor means trampolines are out. I am not sure I am even allowed to be friends with someone who has a trampoline.

Being the child of an EM doctor bends time. We never know if Mom is asleep or awake and have been forced to learn the art of swift and silent movements throughout our house. The care and fear with which we approach walking draws comparisons to stepping in a field with land mines or a horror movie with an unnamed beast. You never know which board will creak and awaken the beast from its silent slumber. You do not want to wake the beast. I take very seriously the reports of scientists who discovered that American black bears react as though they are preparing for a sudden attack on them if they are awakened in their winter dens.

Being the child of an EM doctor means my own injuries and illnesses are judged against a warped yardstick. Sometimes, it feels like I am in a silent competition with my mother’s patients to receive validation of my injured-ness. I am not sure if that’s a competition I want to “win.” At a young age, I would become immensely confused as I watched other mothers seem anxious when their child fell during a sporting event. I thought every parent would use obvious limb deformity as the criteria for concern.

Being the child of an EM doctor means never putting nonfood items (like a bottlecap) in my mouth— not even for a second.

Being the child of a pediatric EM doctor means my mother loves interacting with children. Every time I go out into public with my mother, I pray we do not see a baby, for if we do, all hell breaks loose. She begins to talk aloud in high-pitched tones designed to attract and simultaneously soothe the baby. Soon thereafter—my personal least favorite part—she undertakes a conversation with the parents about how special their baby is. I’m sure these are great techniques at work, but they are painful when deployed at Stop & Shop.

Being the child of an EM doctor means I have had some sort of medical procedure performed on me in my kitchen.

Being the child of an EM doctor means I am increasingly concerned about Mom’s safety. I acknowledge the risks my mom faces in dealing with COVID-19, but I also acknowledge that she will do her best to protect herself and her family.

Most of all, being the child of an EM doctor means I feel proud. I understand how much work and dedication it takes to be an EM doctor. I accept the loss of nights, weekends, holidays, and normal life—traded for passion and purpose. I feel a sense of pride and reflected glory talking about my mother and what she does for a living. Although I have nothing to do with her profession, I am right there with her in her medical journey. When the mother is called to duty, the son also rises. It’s a family job.

Mannix, Jameson (2020). The Son Also Rises. Academic Emergency Medicine: Official Journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, 27(9), 936-936. doi. org/10.1111/acem.14074

C LIFF Wh I te ’76

Thinking Outside the Bubble

Cliff White ’76 believes in the power of connecting young people to global cultures. In fact, he believes in it so strongly that he took his own children, now young adults, around the world, to countries as disparate as Myanmar, Peru, Morocco, and more. “It was the best educational experience my kids ever had,” he says.

Back when he was in high school, says White, this kind of global perspective wasn’t necessarily on the radar, at Rivers or elsewhere. But it is Rivers’s more recent emphasis on a broader approach that has convinced White to include Rivers in his estate plans. “My wife and I support the idea that a high-quality education is the best gift you can give to children,” he says.

By his own admission, White was “a pretty immature child” when he arrived at Rivers in ninth grade. “My parents thought I would be more focused and less distracted” at Rivers, he says, than at the public school he’d been attending. His experience at Rivers was positive, both inside and outside the classroom, and his ties to the school have, if anything, grown stronger since graduation.

White initially thought he’d study engineering in college, but, after dipping a toe in those waters, he discovered that the world of finance was more to his liking. Today, he lives in Providence and serves as institutional consulting director for Graystone Consulting, a business unit of Morgan Stanley.

White has also devoted a significant amount of time to Rivers over the years. He has been a trustee and a member of the Alumni Council, serving as that body’s president for three years. As a trustee, he worked on several committees including finance, development, faculty affairs, and more. The list goes on and on, and it’s perhaps no wonder that White was chosen to receive the Rivers Cup in 1993, given annually by the alumni association to a member of the alumni body who has shown extraordinary dedication to Rivers. He also made lifelong friends at Rivers, and he looks forward to attending his 45th reunion next spring.

White says that Rivers is “dramatically different from when I was there,” and as far as he’s concerned, the changes are all for the good. “There’s more of a world citizen view now, and that’s crucial for our children,” he says. “The more modern Rivers, with its greater emphasis on diversity, and its ways of getting children out of their bubble to have experiences elsewhere, is what drives us most to put Rivers in the planned-giving category.”

the Nonesuch Society was established to recognize the generosity of alumni, parents, and friends who have made provisions for rivers in their estate plans. Its members have each made a commitment to ensure the continuation of excellence in teaching that is so critical to the education of future generations. When you include rivers in your will, you play a significant role in helping future generations of rivers students. at the same time, by taking advantage of tax laws that encourage philanthropy, making a bequest to rivers can significantly reduce estate-tax burdens. For more information about gifts to rivers, such as bequests, living trusts, and gifts of life insurance or retirement plans, or if you would like more information about the Nonesuch Society, please contact tanya holton, director of advancement operations and stewardship, at t.holton@rivers. org or 339-686-2246.

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Please notify us if your phone number, mailing address, or email address changes so that Rivers can stay in touch with you and your family. Contact Ashley McGlone at 339-686-2239 or a.mcglone@rivers.org.

Fa L L 2020

keep calm, wear a mask, and carry on