Yourself?

Experiences and Music

I was listening to a David Tao song on the bus, generally zoning out cos I didn't have my Nintendo DS with me. It was pretty weird, cos at a certain point in the song, I was day dreaming about holding a kayak paddle and feeling the sea waves pull and push it around. And that image faded when that verse of the song passed.

What I want is a way for me to do the same thing. I'm not much of a composer. Really, I write a melody, and some chords, and determine the feel of the song. But there is so much work between that and the performance. I mean.. everyone in the band that I'm in writes their own parts. Aren't they composers too?

We all share a common product, and really, we all have the scope to put our creative ideas into a song. The only question is, would it have been a better song if I wrote it all, or if I let them write some bits of it? Should I be purposefully vague about certain things, so that we can discuss and experiment and come to a conclusion together? What if it weakened the overall structure of the song because it isn't as close as what I want it to be, but it may be stronger in popular appeal.

Well I can't stop thinking about the thought I had during PDCP class, which is the communications course. The issue was.. how to deal with people who feel that they are subject to fate/God's will, and refuse your advice on the basis that things that they have done in the past (sins, retribution) have contributed to their disease today (which is their punishment).

I said that it is really a difference in world view, and the question is, as a doctor, do you work within that world-view, or do you convince the patient of your own world-view.

I thought that maybe we should work within our patients' world-view, because we are not religious/cultural leaders. Either through them, or through relatives, to show that what we want is for the best of the patient. But in the discussion, it became clear that there are many cultural/religious beliefs, that we do not share, and if we do not really share the same cultural beliefs, sometimes we may become blind to the very beliefs that are causing the patients to object. If we ourselves are not culturally aware, we cannot see the obstacles before us that prevent us from getting a successful outcome.

However, I now realize that it is impossible to not "try" to convince the patient of your own world-view. In the end, what we want is behavioural modification. We want our patients to observe therapy, to lead healthier lifestyles, to live longer, more meaningful lives. In that, we have already put ourselves culturally, as non-believers/dis-believers of the concept that disease is punishment from God, or retribution/karma of things they have done in their lives.

If God punishes misdeeds through disease, is not going to a doctor, a means of avoiding the punishment that he deserves? If we take away the punishment, but we don't remove the sin, won't God be angry? Isn't it better to remove the sin through spiritual cleansing and prayer, and hope God lifts his punishment? After all, many people have been "cured" in that way.

In a certain way, to certain cultures, taking away of punishment (disease), could be the same as lifting sin. Do we want to claim that? If you take a big piece of the religion out, wouldn't you run into conflict with the religious leader? And is the religious leader going to look after the welfare of his people, or the traditions of his religion? Because maybe these are duties that he traditionally carried out. For example, witchdoctors concocting medicinal cures, or having a mass prayer to wish for speedy recovery, or going into a trance, to seek forgiveness from the deities.

I don't know what is the right thing to do. I know I'll work for the best interests of my patients, bound by the laws of the land, of what doctors are legally obligated to do, as well as by my own moral conscience. There are many guidelines, but no easy answer.

posted by Downhere. @ 1:06 pm