Showing understanding and kindness toward his surgeons, and they’d, shown the same courtesies, back to him too, the cycle of kindness here, is simply, amazing. Translated…
Mr. Hsieh was the only “perfect” elderly man in the whole of southern Taiwan. He’s the owner of the two of the biggest supermarkets in town, he’d also, owned, a huge pineapple plantation. He’s very tall, and whenever he’s around people, he’d, smiled on. He’s already, seventy-four, very healthy, with a kind, and wise wife, two sons, a daughter, five grandchildren. When he was in his first year of high school, back in 1960, he’d dropped out to work as a cashier at a shop because of his household economics. After he married in his twenties, he’d, owned and operated a small grocery shop, he’s not just hardworking, he’s also, willing to learn, read six, seven magazines and newspapers a day, tried to understand, the trends of the market economies of the world, and, used his knowledge, and, transformed his small shop, into, a larger scale grocery store, then finally, into, a wholesale’s chain, and, he’d taken the kindness he had, to service his customers, and that was why, his business was, always, going so well. He’d retired at age seventy, his eldest and daughter after they’d graduated community college, started working for him, and, they’d, taken over the business after he’d, retired, his youngest is, a government employee. And his wife and he after stopped working in the stores, oversee the workings of the fruit planation, and drink teas.
And naturally, this, perfect ten elderly gent is also, giving. In his forties, he’d, gotten a strong connection with a Buddhist temple in the rural area, and every time he’d harvested, he would always delivered ten casings of pineapples for the monks there. And the supermarkets would, sell off the goods four months before the expiration dates. Mr. Hsieh had, selected the produces which were ten months away from being overdue, to give to the monks, like the formulas imported from the U.S., the locally grown rice, the organic soy sauce, organic vinegar, for thirty years on end, to a temple of a hundred workers and monks.
But, when Mr. Hsieh turned seventy-four, he was, overcome with illness so suddenly. Throughout the day, he’d needed to go to the restroom, and, felt that burning pain in his lower abdomen. He’d gone to the clinic opposite of his house, the doctor told him it was an urinary tract infection, gave him some antibiotics, and after he’d started taking the meds, his conditions improved a little. A little over a month later, his condition worsened, he’d gone to another clinic, the doctor gave him the exact same diagnosis, and put him on antibiotics, and he’d gone through three separate clinics to get treated, and became nauseated and dizzy, from taking all the antibiotics. Early one morn, he’d felt this immense pain inside his abdomen, to the point he’d started, sweating cold sweats. His home was a huge old-style mansion, combined with three shopfronts, the elderly and the sons lived together, along with the grandchildren too. The wife called the two sons, they’d called up an ambulance, to lift Hsieh, the elderly into a teaching hospital in Kaohsiung. The urologist gave him a cystoscope, then a biopsy. Mr. Hsieh, the elderly, had, checked in, to a ward with a roommate there.
The head of urology, Liu took a couple of doctors to the ward, with Mr. Hsieh’s wife and three children close by. Liu said, “There are, tumors inside Mr. Hsieh’s bladder, totaling up to thirty, forty pieces, and, the biopsy confirmed they were, cancers, and, had metastasized to the intestines already. Mr. Hsieh, if you decide to get the operations, we will, schedule it for you.
The family of five was, thrilled, and flew into, a huge panic. How could he, who’d always been, healthy and active, have cancer? How could he, who’d done, nothing but philanthropy, have cancer? The eldest was tall like his father, but he’d, rarely smiled, his emotions, changed into anger, “The three doctors from before made the misdiagnoses, they needed to pay, for almost, killing my father!”
His wife, with the sorrowfulness, held onto his hand. Mr. Hsieh, the elderly, closed his eyes for a bit, the department manager, Liu looked at him sympathetically. Mr. Hsieh opened up his eyes, said, “then, do it”, he’d even, smiled. Then, his wife, signed the papers.
The next day, he’d entered into the O.R., and, he was in surgery for twelve whole hours, because the surgeons not only needed to remove the forty tumors inside his bladder separately, but, they’d, also needed to, cut open his intestines, and remove the five smaller tumors singly too. The head surgeon was, Dr. Chen, he’d taken two residents along to perform the surgeries. After the surgery, Mr. Chen the elder stayed in the I.C.U. for three days of observation, then, transferred, to the regular ward, and the family felt, somewhat, relieved, his wife, the three children, along with all their spouses, the seven family members took shifts, looking after Mr. Hsieh, the elderly.
But, the very evening he was, transferred into the regular wards, Mr. Hsieh, the elder started having excruciating abdomen pains, the daughter who was staying with him found the resident, he’d told her, that it was normal, that he’d felt the pains after the surgeries, and prescribed some tranquilizers and painkillers. The next morn, the meds stopped working, Mr. Hsieh started, screaming out in pain, his daughter knew he could, take a lot of pains, and that her father would, be more than considerate, of other patients around him, that he must be in so much pain, to scream so loudly. She’d, rushed out, to find the doctor, and, the head of urology, Dr. Liu happened to come by, and as he’d heard Mr. Hsieh the elder screamed loudly, he’d rushed in. Dr. Liu placed his hand on Mr. Hsieh, the elder’s stomach, then, listened around his abdomen region. Suddenly, the head of urology, Dr. Liu had a serious face, stated, “Schedule him for surgery now!”
And, Mr. Hsieh the elder, was pushed into the O.R. once more, this time, it was still, Dr. Chen as the primary surgeon. The surgery lasted eight hours, and, as he was, pushed out of the O.R., the family circled around the surgeon, he’d told them, “We had a successful surgery, it’s, acute peritonitis. Come to the I.C.U. tomorrow morning, and, the head of urology, Dr. Liu will, explain everything.”
The I.C.U. opened its door at nine for the families to come visit, and, only two members were, allowed in at a time, the nurses told them, that they can, all enter together. They’d arrived to before Hsieh, the elderly’s bedside, he’s already, awake, from the anesthesia, wearing off, very weak, didn’t say a word, only, nodded toward them. At this time, the head of urology, Dr. Liu entered with Chen, the primary physician, and the two residents to Mr. Hsieh’s hospital bed, the four doctors bowed their heads to the family. Dr. Liu stated clearly, “We’re very sorry toward Mr. Hsieh, after the first surgery, the surgeon, after removing all the tumors, handed him over to the resident to patch him up the wounds, but, because the intestines were sutured up completely, there was, a crack, and the contents of the intestines got into the abdomen, causing peritonitis, which put you under the knife a second time, it’s all our fault, and all the costs of your hospital stay, aside from what’s covered by the health insurances, we’ll, take care of it completely.”
The eldest son was furious, screamed, “You are too careless, causing my dad so much pain, I will SUE you, for neglect!”, the four doctors’ faces became, slightly, twisted, and, the department manager Liu, sighed.
Mr. Hsieh the elderly, stopped his son with his hand, stated in a very weak voice, “don’t be like this, the doctors had been working over ten hours, they’d become, too fatigued, it’s, understandable, that his careless mistake had, happened, and, as they’d apologized genuinely, let’s just, accept it”, the four doctors looked graciously toward Mr. Hsieh, the elderly.
During the time of Mr. Hsieh the elderly’s stay, the department manager, Dr. Liu took care of dressing up, cleaning his wounds personally, and took him step by step through his chemotherapy. After Mr. Hsieh the elder was discharged, every time he’d returned for the scheduled appointments, he’d always brought the fruits and vegetables to the department head. Dr. Liu had even, asked Mr. Hsieh the elder to become, a member of the cancer support group, to help put the other patients in better spirits. And, the two of them became, friends who’d, smiled at one another whenever they see one another.
And so, this could’ve, easily been a neglect case fought in the courts, but the elderly man was empathetic toward the doctors for working long hours, to help save his life, and that, is why this cycle of kindness kept rolling, from the patient to the doctors, and the doctors treated this elderly man, with respect, for his understanding and kindness toward them too.
Life, the Obstacle Course 