Tuesday, April 17, 2012

My Mother's Red Shawl - El Rebozo Colorado
Colin Horricks - Doctor



The red shawl to me means ‘addressing’ a matter of passion. As an ongoing student of Carl Jung I have learned to search for the importance of everyday symbols. Seeing the metaphor is what connects the mundane to meaning, whether in a dream or a strange circumstance in life or a patient’s symptoms.

For instance, sometimes patients come to me concerned with their heart and it’s really symptomatic of trouble in their love life. We are living, breathing poems.

In the case of the red shawl, it asks me to address my passion for medicine. Patient care is a beautiful thing.

I had a dream once and I woke with the lingering statement: “it takes a lot of nice patience to have a lot of nice patients.” If I’ve learned anything in nearly forty years of practicing family medicine it’s the importance of patience. Patience in the pregnant pause and waiting for a response or with a patent in addiction it may take five years of struggle to get to the beginning of recovery.

I love the continuity of care in a general practice – seeing patients over many years in all circumstances of misery and healing is very rich, a kind of reciprocal love.

Patient care is a beautiful thing. Oh, but the paperwork is another matter!


Ian Mulgrew Vancouver Sun Columnist
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Patrick Reid Statesman, Flag Designer
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Juliya Kate Dominatrix