Dr Christian Barnard, the pioneering cardiac-transplant surgeon, has been influential in me being a medical doctor and not some engineering graduate from IIT. Had decided to be a doctor early at the age 16, after reading a lesson "In celebration of being alive" in English textbook of CBSE standard 10th ! In-spite of being extremely strong in Mathematics and Physics , I chose biology and Medicine because of my passion for serving the sufferers and poor. I have maintained that passion throughout my life as a clinical scientist , clinical researcher and Healthcare Executive.
I posted this "sort of a disclaimer" , because of some general (mis) beliefs that :
1) Doctors take up medicine because they are poor in Mathematics and Physics
2) Doctors become doctors just to make money and lack passion of service , research and innovation
I have tried my best to prove both these (mis) beliefs wrong through my life and career.
Coming to the topic of the blog post, the quote that I remembered and inspired ( or instigated) this final blog post of the year was the following by Dr Christian Barnard :
"Suffering ennobles you, makes you a better person. You don’t become a better person because you are suffering; but you become a better person because you have experienced suffering. We can’t appreciate light if we haven’t known darkness. Nor can we appreciate warmth if we have never suffered cold. It’s not what you’ve lost that’s important. What is important is what you have left.. "
Recently, Dr Shriram Lagoo passed away. He was known "atheist" and a doctor who had given up practice for his passion for theater. He never believed in existence of God and has been an idol/ poster boy of liberals, socialists and atheists. In one of his interviews (that I heard recently), he reminisces about how life is full of suffering and that there is very little happiness in life. He even mentions that life is like a huge mountain of unhappiness and suffering while happiness is small pinch of sand !!
This sentence intrigued me. Made me think if this person was really logical in his acts and thinking or was he depressed and unhappy all along and lacked positivity , good guidance and advice from a mentor ? Was it his stubbornness that made him suffer all along his life and made him live a life that was more unhappy than happy ? Whatever ... I would not subscribe to his philosophy of life and stick to the philosophy of Dr Christian Barnard, who as a doctor - cardiac surgeon , a religious man who later devoted his life to study of pharmacogenetics , genetics, biotechnology and gene therapy , all in service of the suffering patients and humanity in general !! He was a positive influence to many and a cheer leader to his patients , infused life and happiness to even the young dying children who needed cardiac transplants !
That is how I concluded about these distinct philosophies. For me this is a takeaway from year 2019. It re-emphasizes and re-establishes my long held belief in passionate life , positivity , en-nobbling value of suffering and positive thinking. That is the way I plan to venture further in 2020 !
Enjoy this serene video "Sunset of 2019" .. sights and sounds at twilight on the beach !
Goodbye 2019 ! Welcome 2020 !!