Miracles are thought to be some extremely rare supernatural event, happening once in a lifetime of a person. Being a GI surgeon dealing with many, most complex medical problems and operating on patients sometimes with a little survival chance, I have been more fortunate to witness many such miracles in my patients. Patients with rare chances of survival against all odds make it, with their sheer willpower (such miracles have been compiled in the book “Valiant Warriors”), patients with advanced inoperable tumors, survive longer enough than average survival, patients with cardiac arrest revive after 30 minutes of arrest with resuscitation, etc. I have come to believe in the miracle of miracles. Handling a life-and-death situation, and talking to relatives in such a situation, I always endeavor to keep the hope alive, for it is on this hope, that all the positivity of my mind can be focused. Together with this positive energy, the universal energy conspires to create a miracle, which we may decipher as destiny.
A few days ago, I met a lady, who happens to be my teacher’s wife, whom I had operated on 7 years ago. She was found to have advanced unresectable cancer with widespread metastatic disease in the abdomen. I had thoroughly counseled my teacher, and her husband, regarding the poor prognosis and that we should not bother her with major surgery or even chemotherapy for she had a short life expectancy. I had sent her to an anchor physician for palliative chemotherapy, and the physician had called me asking why not operate and remove as much as I could. I had clearly refused citing my reasons. I was very happy to meet her after 7 years fully well. Life does teach us many lessons along the way if we happen to keep our eyes open. The best lessons have been taught to me by my patients, who have possessed exemplary courage to fight their disease and have fought all odds against them to become victorious. Many other lessons have been learned from the failures in life, which have been invaluable.
So friends, in difficult times, do not forget, that miracles just don’t happen, but happen more frequently than we think, and that we should not lose hope till either miracle happens, or we make them happen.
Author :- Dr Sanjiv Haribhakti
M.Ch. GI Surgeon of Western India
Kaizen Hospital
