December 27, 1916.My dear Miss Turner:-
I want to have a little talk with you before the year is out. I am at home now enjoying my days with Dr. McLean, her sister and my Chinese friends.
Your card came yesterday. I thank you for remembering me at this season. I was glad to hear from you also.
Now I have a little time for my friends and myself these days. Dr. Huber asked us to do little studying during vacation and I shall look over my slides during this vacation. That is all I am going to do. Our Histology & Embryology examinations come after Christmas vacation. However I am not going to cram the last minute. I feel it is the daily work that counts. I have two written quizes [sic] in both these subjects. I can say that I used my time wisely in laboratories. I have a good partner. She is a Vassar graduate - a good deal older than I. We help each other. I am real fortunate to have good partners both in Anatomy and Histology. Some of them do so much talking when they should work. Consequently they have to make up the work at nights. So far I have been able to finish my laboratory work in laboratories. I work hard when I am in the medical building. I study from half-past seven to ten every night. I have not been staying late or getting up early to study. I feel thta is all I can do. I take an hour of rest or walk too. I begin to know how to study and how to go at things. It seems to me the two years collegiate work taught me how to work. I hope I will be able to get on as well as I started. I just enjoy my studies. They are the things, you can see. Although one cannot see every step in embryology, the adult strucutre helps in mastering the subject. I begin to like my anatomy professor. It is just his look that scares people miles away. He helps those students who try to help themselves. I have noticed times that he passed some students never taking notice of them. He is a good professor, every student likes his explanation.
I shall move to a new place after vacation. I am going to live in a private home so I can live and have my meals at the same place. I have been very homesick. There is no college life or home life. I shall be glad when I can have little home life on Sundays.
Dr. McLean has four Chinese students here. One of the other three is gradute in medicine of University of Illinois. She graduated two years ago, had two years practical work in American. She is on her way to China. The rest two are my two friends, one is a senior in Southwestern College, Kansas, the other is a boy from my home town taking his premedical in Washington University. He sings well. We have "concerts" now & then.
Dr. McLean has been ill a great deal this winter. I feel so sorry. Her life has been such a blessing to many girls and boys both of this country and foreign lands. She is going to take a vacation soon. I do hope that vacation will just be the means of restoring her to perfect health again.
I want to see you too. You do not know how much I miss my professors & friends at Mount Holyoke College. If any time I find my work is too heavy for me I will drop a course, taking up again in summer school or regular term. I know my people rather to have me spend few hundred more dollars and a year in America than to have me go back as a nervous doctor. I am sure Dr. McLean would let me do what I think is the best for myself. How I wish I have wings to fly to college. Since I cannot I just have to be satisfied by communicating with letters.
I suppose you have two weeks vacation too. I can hardly realize this is my third Christmas in America. This is certainly a happy vacation for me. My two Christmas vacations in East were very pleasant too. But I like to be here the most for I feel this is just like my home. If my own mother is living today, she cannot treat me better than Dr. McLean.
We had a children's party Christmas day. I enjoyed them greatly. I am very fond of children.
I have not heard from home as often as when I was in college. My father is interested in my work. I do hear from my brother often. I must tell you that Dr. McLean is going to write to my father. She has written to my brother about me. I hope through her letter it may be the means to bring me closer to his heart. (my father)
We have a medical student in our house. He is Dr. McLean's nephew studying in Washington University. She has worked so hard to get this medical school open to women, but the old-fashioned professors just won't do it. Won't it be fine if I can stay home and go to school?
I begin to like Ann Arbor. It is strange to say that I like the boys better than girls. I mean those in my class. The girls talk so much in laboratories that they are a constant trouble to me and others too. You see I simply cannot like these girls. There are only few girls in my class. I like two of them. They are my partners. The rest of them are "chatter boxes." The boys are polite and quiet. They are good students.
We have twenty six Chinese students in Michigan University, four in medical department, other three are boys one in each class. Most of them are in professional schools.
I hear from my friends from college. I try to write to them as often as I can. Time is so limited that I only can write them once in a long while.
It is getting rather late. I sleep ten hours during my vacation. This has been another pleasant hour for me to tell you about my work and myself. I had a letter from Miss Janney. I want to write to her this week. Miss Holmes has been so kind and patient to me. She seemed to understand me. I want to keep in touch with her too.
Good bye & with much love.
Yours sincerely
Me-Iung Ting