Fern and Jack, our two current residents, are both quick to laugh and smile. Fern's face breaks into a big grin most mornings when she sees us, "falang!, falang!" (foreigner!, foreigner!), she calls , "breakfast!" and beckons for us to follow.
She and Jack giggle as Joe and I try out our new Thai words over fried rice and Thai tea, always encouraging as we learn names for foods, numbers, and important words like "yummy" (arroy). I think this is the essence of sanuk. Even though they have patients to see before rounds, they take the time to eat and entertain the foreigners.
After breakfast some mornings we have Infectious Disease Clinic, where we see many people living with HIV, overcoming tuberculosis, beating melioidosis, or slowly succumbing to a wide range of infections from AML after a failed bone marrow transplant. Each individual is handled gracefully by Dr. Romanee, who keeps her voice at such a low calm level that sitting next to her, I barely hear her. But the patients always seem to.
Jai yen yen.
In the afternoon we round, Jack and Fern are forced to present in English because Joe and I are here. Actually, the residents frequently present in English on infectious disease rounds anyway, so that they get some practice with English for future overseas conferences.
Never does rounding seem rushed, jai yen yen, as each patient is seen in turn in a mix of Thai and English. And rounding is always accompanied by its fair share of laughter, sanuk.
I hope to keep jai yen and sanuk when I return to Minnesota.
