Droplets of condensation gather across a smooth surface, each one a tiny world, shaped by invisible forces. Water molecules cling to one another through cohesion, pulled together by the simple truth that they are stronger when bonded than when alone. And in this delicate, shimmering pattern, medicine finds its reflection.

Doctors, too, are like these droplets.

Each physician begins as a single point: shaped by training, pressure, and environment. But the work of healing is never solitary. It depends on the quiet, persistent attraction that draws professionals together: trust, shared purpose, and the unspoken understanding formed in hospital corridors, call rooms, and difficult conversations.

Like condensation, the medical community forms when conditions demand it.

When the air cools, when chaos rises, when illness threatens, when systems falter, doctors gather. They cluster. They lock to nurses, techs, therapists, students, attendings, all of them linked by the cohesive force of duty.

And yet, the droplets show something else too: cohesion is beautiful, but imperfect.

Some droplets merge smoothly, creating strong, unified shapes. Others resist, holding to their boundaries, reluctant to join. Some seem pulled in different directions, stretching thinly, barely holding on. Between these beads of water lie small gaps and dry spaces, evidence that even molecules meant to bond can struggle to connect when conditions shift.

Doctors are no different. 

In the best moments, they form one continuous surface, supporting one another, sharing the weight of grief and responsibility. A resident leans on an attending for clarity; an attending leans on a nurse for wisdom; a medical student leans on the whole team for growth. They are shaped by the same calling, held in place by unseen forces of compassion and responsibility. These bonds create stability, structure, and resilience.

But in harder times, the “negative charges” appear, the forces that push droplets apart.

Long hours. Emotional fatigue. Competing priorities. The subtle erosion of empathy after too many nights on call. The reluctance to ask for help because everyone else seems just as overwhelmed.

Condensation becomes a portrait of medicine: a field held together by both attraction and tension, strength and fragility.

However, the overall pattern remains whole. The droplets, like doctors, remain connected even when they look separate. They share the same surface, the same purpose, the same elemental origin.

Tiny worlds, bonded by invisible forces, each reflecting light in its own way. Together, they create something textured, resilient, and quietly extraordinary.

Just like the people who practice medicine.

Davin Evanson MD is a resident physician in California