Deaths and Life

Life and death are illusions. We are in a constant state of transformation.     

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (Mexican Film Director, 1963- )

Life and Death

Life and death come in a never-ending cycle. After my mother passed away in September last year, I have had some time to think about mortality. I have a notion that the Supreme Being does not want me to witness the death of my loved ones. When my dad passed away in October 2012, I was in Saudi Arabia. I was to appear for the first of the three exams that would lead to my British qualification of MRCPCH. This exam was at Jeddah on the 8th of October. My dad passed away on the 6th. It was ultimate sadness for me to stay back for the exam and THEN travel to India to meet my family and console them/be consoled by them. 

When my mom (Shirin S Savliwala) passed away, I was in the U.K. Her death probably took away the torture she was undergoing for the past month and a half as she had a severe deterioration in August. Fortunately, it may be supposed, I was able to go to meet her for a few days that time; however, when her end came, I could not be there in time for her last rites. 

When I did visit India in mid-September, she had been buried for over 10 days. Even so, I was able to visit her grave and pay my last respects to her. She has left behind over 45 years of memories for me. She married my father when my biological mom passed away in 1971 of breast cancer. She was the real mom to me, although she wasn't my birth mom, as she reared me right from my primary school years to where I am today. May her soul rest in peace.

When you talk of death, can birth or life be far behind? The miracle of life is all around us. I have a small succulent plant that I purchased from a local store a few months ago. It hardly needs watering. I noticed, around mid-October, that it had sprung a whole new stem from the top of it. Now, several new leaves have risen in a rosette around this new stem.

Babies are born at the hospital where I work with near-clockwork regularity. Thousands of babies are born everywhere in the world, with a near 350,000 born globally in a 24-hour interval. Add to this the number of other life forms and we are talking of millions of new organisms, plants and animals every single day of our life. And then, I think: Hmm. So, regardless of lives lost, the planet keeps forming new life at a pace faster than it extinguishes its previous citizens. 

That is the hope that keeps us going. 

What do you think about this issue? Do you think death is a limitation on our race or a kind of selection that makes the species stronger? Do reply in the comments section.

May I also ask you to visit the blog of one of my very good friends who stays at Houston, Texas. Please read her blog HERE. 

An update

It has been a long time since I entered a post here. Just to update everyone, here is a simple synopsis of things that have happened in my life:
1. I rushed home to make peace with my dying mother in the third week of August.
2. I completed my first month in the new home
3. I went back to Mumbai on my planned fortnight-long holiday from the 17th of September to the 20th. In between, my mum passed away to meet her Maker.
4. Upon returning, within a week, I took my study break to visit the United States of America on my first ever visit. The purpose was to participate in the World Congress of Gastroenterology - where I was to mount, display and answer questions on my scientific poster at the Orange County Convention Center, West Concourse, in Florida, USA. I stayed in a budget hotel for 5 nights and used some of the free days to roam around and visit some of the major city-wide attractions, including Universal Studios and Seaworld.
5. Life has gone back to a relaxation mode and I have resumed my work in the hospital.

And that's pretty much it, insofar as a synopsis goes.  

Writing after a long time

It is true that I have been very busy the entire last month. Just last week, I had to rush home to India to help my family look after my mum who took suddenly and critically ill and was admitted to the ICU. She came down with sepsis secondary to infection in a bed-sore. With treatment, during the three or four days that I was there, she managed to pull out of the critical stage and has gradually improved over the last 10-12 days that have elapsed since. 

In other news, I am trying to get a visa to visit the U.S. to present a paper (a poster, actually) in Orlando, Florida, in mid-October. This would be at the World Congress of Gastroenterology. Towards this end, I went for an interview at the US Embassy in London. The interview went off well, I think, and I should be granted a visa to go there. 

Now, I am shifting to new rented premises outside the hospital. It's bye-bye to the rooms I resided in for the last over 20 months. It will be a bitter-sweet parting, as these 1 1/2 years have taught me a lot ... and not just about my work, but also about living alone in a developed country, where one can have anything one wants by ordering it online or buying it in a store. I have hoarded so much stuff that when the van-renter came to pick up my things to transport it to my new premises, he simply gawked and said he had never seen as much luggage with a bro! Well, my luggage was phenomenal in volume - stretching to over 300 kg by his estimate. It consisted of several cardboard boxes and literally dozens upon dozens of plastic bags. As I write this, I have shifted all my luggage to the new premises, but a lot is still to be unpacked and put away in its proper place. 

In the afternoon, I visited the Furniture shop of the British Heart Foundation and bought several used pieces of furniture that will be delivered to my new place tomorrow. These include a dining table, two chairs, a glass display case, a computer table, and several other smaller items. Once they are all set-up, I should be ready to live in my new place.

So, where is it? It is a mere 5 minutes' walk away from the hospital in what is known as Victoria Mansions. Hopefully, I will complete my move within the next 36 hours. HERE is a map showing my new place. It is only 300 meters away from my current location (and the hospital) as the crow flies, but translates to about half a km if you follow the roads.

In quite other news, I went to the Blackpool Livewire 2017 event at the Promenade yesterday. The event organisers had offered free passes to the concert as well as to the after-dinner party for the first two days of the event, viz. on Friday and Saturday. I had requested passes for two people only for the Saturday, and the passes were waiting for me in my inbox when I returned from India. They had upgraded my pass to a VIP pass. This pass enabled me to access the VIP area on the promenade. This was an elevated shamiana facing the large stage where singers and performers came, traipsing in a line, to entertain the crowds. 

Is anything else happening? Yes. I did a few registrar locums now. One was at Whiston last month and the second was just a few nights ago at Oldham. Both of them were in Paediatrics and I guess they went reasonably well. 

At my own trust, I am now a person that is increasingly entrusted with tasks done by middle-grade doctors, and I guess my progression is just about at par with my expectations. I should be looking at better prospects once my current tenure expires in February 2018. Whether it will mean a proper middle-grade job in Blackpool, or whether I will have to look elsewhere, I do not know. We will have to wait and see. 

And that brings me to the end of the post. Do let me know your reactions to this post and comment on what you think. Thank you.