CPE:Random Dots Week 2.5

• being able to say "asalaam aleikum" to a mother of a patient from the Middle East opened the doors to a very rich and unexpected conversation
• if you give your students unclear directions, telling them you're "disappointed" in them when they misconstrue what you said doesn't help
• on the other hand, if you're willing to say you overreacted, you're a grown-up
• "hoping for a miracle" is sometimes the saddest phrase in the world, when a baby is being kept alive by artificial means and has never known the bliss of sleeping in its mother's arms
• a child that's sick and a child that's dying look very different
• grandparents who are doctors sometimes slow things down when a child is being treated in the trauma bay...because they can always imagine the worst case scenario
• twelve hour days are tiring for all, young and middle aged alike
• the tiniest, sickest babies sometimes show the most extraordinary personalities, as when a little guy was unhappy because the nurse was seven minutes late for his feeding. One angry little dude!
• this work is a privilege. God guides my words when my own feeble attempts fall short.