Soul Searching

well, phase one of my trip is over, none too soon. it’ll be nice to have a break for a couple of days and sleep in a bed that i’m used to. i’m looking forward, very predicatably to a big ole steak, and a bottle of good wine. there’s an ‘85 marcarini they have at […]

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i’m finally headed back after my first stint. i’m going back to teach a bodywork seminar, and check in on my patients. i have about 15 hours in layovers, and about 20 more in plane time. i’m in the middle of my first of three five hour blocks of waiting. i have just enough money […]

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so i’ve done about 300 treatments this month. that’s more than a busy month in my office in ny! i’ve helped a bunch of people and i find myself more convinced than ever of the need for chinese medicine all over the world.
this month i’ve treated poor illiterate farmers, royal families, tsunami victims, american expats, […]

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in the area that was the most devastated it was 15 minutes between the earthquake and tsunami. it was around 8am in the morning and most people were going about their daily routine. they experience minor earthquakes all of the time - with no tsunami afterwards.
apparently the next most fatal tsunami happened in southern italy […]

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okay, we saved one life from the scorpion bite, diagnosed at least one person with leperosy, did about one hundred treatments, helped a bunch of headaches that were unresposive to western meds (they were very responsive to chinese medicine), told one woman she had breast cancer and needed immediate treatment, and gave lots of little […]

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it is amazing the resiliency that some people have. after some of the heart wrenching stories i’ve heard, that most of these people can even smile is mind boggling.
they show up to the clinic wanting chinese medicine treatment for ailments that have not responded to western medicine. they show up with friends smiling, and laughing, […]

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we saw about fifty patients during the day in two 4-5 hour sessions. the day had ended around 10pm. we were all tired and talking about the crazy cases we saw. then, around 11:30 at nite (we woke up around 6am that morning), a guy walks in. sorry, more like is carried in by his […]

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i guess that kind of question is a natural byproduct of this kind of journey, where you see such incredible disparities between what it takes for us in the west to feel “happy” or “fulfilled,” versus people that are happy just appreciating the privilege of being alive. for some people in the west it’s the […]

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imagine five people living in a 10′ x 10′ mud covered tent, pitched on wet ground that can’t drain after a heavy, tropical rain. then imagine living like that for a year. that’s part of every day for these people. what i have trouble comprehending is how these proud people get themselves as cleaned, and […]

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i am deep in the heart of the civil war zone, surrounded by rebel camps and activity. i am far outside the “green zone,” the area designated by the UN to be a reasonable security risk.

this is the area where people need the most help. for many here, i am providing basic healthcare. western medicine […]

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