Report of 22 July '07
Hello from Carmel -
Trust all is well. We are fine in our respective corners of the world.
Some great times this week - I got together w/ Deepali Jani and her family. They now own a Subway franchise and we ate there; it is one of my favorite restaurants and she was kind enough to indulge me w/o thinking twice about it. It was nice to see everyone, it's hard to believe nice, funny Deepali was once my patient. I got to raid her closet, and hang out w/ folks that seem like family. It was also good to see a former residency colleague, Jeremy Kirk. His irreverence, sense of humor and devotion to patients have long captivated me, and this time, his staggering generosity humbled me. We laughed almost the entire time we were eating, and commiserated also; it was cathartic, and it was wonderful to see that Kirk is doing so well. I flew to Kansas to see my residency classmate, Olivia Fondoble, and that was great. We cooked Indian food for her family, hung out, talked, gossipped, laughed and watched "Hairspray," which was excellent. Olivia too passed on lots of clothes for me, and vats of treats for the family, and I returned to Indy far more loaded than when I went. Olivia is a gentle, generous sort, and great company for the soul.
I got to chat w/ lovely women we know - Meenakshi Ponnusamy at Bucknell, and Sharon Cole-Braxton in Houston, and as always, these ladies served to invigorate me. We are very fortunate in our friends.
The patients here have been fine also. I had a young man in, who had a cut on his right arm; the wound was healing, and I left it alone. I did ask him how it came about, and he said he had choked his ex-girlfriend's current boyfriend and she had cut him. Hmmm. I suggested counselling for him, and he said he did not need anyone else to work out his issues, that he would do so himself. I mentioned my experience w/ counselling, when I thought my world was collapsing around me after Manu passed away, and stated that counselling would not change the events around us, that it would change us, and how we dealt w/ said events. He was about 18 or 19 and handsome, not much older than my sons, and I would hope that if my sons were on the verge of such behavior, someone would alert them to their options.
I also saw a gay man in his mid-50's, who had sought help for his alcoholism, had been to a retreat, and stopped drinking, cold turkey, right after it. We talked about that, I expressed my admiration for his staggering achievement, and he handed me a note w/ some questions. Some of it was metaphysical and philosophical, but much of it was lovely and encouraging, and I have saved it. I never expect anything from my patients, other than a hope that they will comply w/ the treatment I suggest, and this note was very recharging.
The 3 Weiss men are well and wonderful, and send me great notes. Well, Wonderful, Weiss - that pretty much describes them. Naren is growing to like his new school a lot, and Navin has just finished some exams. Scott is bonding w/ his sons, and this experience might be much more therapeutic than all of us imagined.
Unw -
R
Trust all is well. We are fine in our respective corners of the world.
Some great times this week - I got together w/ Deepali Jani and her family. They now own a Subway franchise and we ate there; it is one of my favorite restaurants and she was kind enough to indulge me w/o thinking twice about it. It was nice to see everyone, it's hard to believe nice, funny Deepali was once my patient. I got to raid her closet, and hang out w/ folks that seem like family. It was also good to see a former residency colleague, Jeremy Kirk. His irreverence, sense of humor and devotion to patients have long captivated me, and this time, his staggering generosity humbled me. We laughed almost the entire time we were eating, and commiserated also; it was cathartic, and it was wonderful to see that Kirk is doing so well. I flew to Kansas to see my residency classmate, Olivia Fondoble, and that was great. We cooked Indian food for her family, hung out, talked, gossipped, laughed and watched "Hairspray," which was excellent. Olivia too passed on lots of clothes for me, and vats of treats for the family, and I returned to Indy far more loaded than when I went. Olivia is a gentle, generous sort, and great company for the soul.
I got to chat w/ lovely women we know - Meenakshi Ponnusamy at Bucknell, and Sharon Cole-Braxton in Houston, and as always, these ladies served to invigorate me. We are very fortunate in our friends.
The patients here have been fine also. I had a young man in, who had a cut on his right arm; the wound was healing, and I left it alone. I did ask him how it came about, and he said he had choked his ex-girlfriend's current boyfriend and she had cut him. Hmmm. I suggested counselling for him, and he said he did not need anyone else to work out his issues, that he would do so himself. I mentioned my experience w/ counselling, when I thought my world was collapsing around me after Manu passed away, and stated that counselling would not change the events around us, that it would change us, and how we dealt w/ said events. He was about 18 or 19 and handsome, not much older than my sons, and I would hope that if my sons were on the verge of such behavior, someone would alert them to their options.
I also saw a gay man in his mid-50's, who had sought help for his alcoholism, had been to a retreat, and stopped drinking, cold turkey, right after it. We talked about that, I expressed my admiration for his staggering achievement, and he handed me a note w/ some questions. Some of it was metaphysical and philosophical, but much of it was lovely and encouraging, and I have saved it. I never expect anything from my patients, other than a hope that they will comply w/ the treatment I suggest, and this note was very recharging.
The 3 Weiss men are well and wonderful, and send me great notes. Well, Wonderful, Weiss - that pretty much describes them. Naren is growing to like his new school a lot, and Navin has just finished some exams. Scott is bonding w/ his sons, and this experience might be much more therapeutic than all of us imagined.
Unw -
R
posted by Renu Weiss at
5:40 AM
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