Well another Thanksgiving has come and gone, and now it’s holiday season, which apparently has something for everyone to love and hate in our multicultural society. In between bites and bits of turkey and other assorted colonial delicacies I thought of a few things for which I am thankful, in addition to cranberry sauce, and am happy to bore you with a few of them now.
Like a good dinner, it’s important to start with the basics, work up to the main course, and leave before the check arrives. So with that in mind… I’m thankful for my health, which has now been confirmed by a recent and all too thorough annual physical (I’m not thankful for certain aspects of the exam), and I’m thankful for running which has been a contributing factor to said health. I’m very thankful for my family, who give me a reason to come home every night and even more reasons to go to work every day. I’m thankful for the physical, mental, and spiritual gifts that we all share on a daily basis, and for my own health and happiness in these areas of my own life. I’m thankful to live in America, a country with the best doctors and the worst healthcare system in the world, except possibly for every other one. I’m even thankful for living and working in New York City, although there are times it is decidedly hard in many ways. I’m thankful for my job, and for being able to do what I love and love what I do. It’s not all fun and games and some parts of the medical field can be a minor drag, but on balance, every other profession would feel like work to me. I’ve always envisioned a life in medicine so this feels like living the dream on a lot of levels. I’m also thankful for a good read, jam bands, music streaming, a good pair of headphones, and a comfortable pair of shoes, among other things.
And of course, I’m thankful for you, my dear NYC patients who have become part of my life as I learn so much about and hopefully become part of yours. I’m even thankful for this blog. When I first started writing it I imagined it as a convenient way to convey relevant information to a very select few who might be bored and crazy enough to read it, but much to my surprise, I often hear comments from the more than a few devotees. Which has forced me to actually work on the content and style, rather than dumping the overflowing contents of my head onto the virtual page. So for that, thanks a lot.
See you in the office.
Ernest Isaacson
