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Monday, February 24, 2014

Nishreen: THE GOLDEN GIRL…


For the nth time, I examined the tip of my index finger. It has been deformed by the pen grip following years of writing prescriptions. MDs write as much, no, I think much more than clerical employees of any office on the planet. Technology, in fact, has made the lives of secretaries and other clerical workers simpler, while MDs are forever condemned to the basics of writing on a piece of paper, not to mention record books, reports, and insurance papers to fill up.

Yesterday, I saw more than 30 patients. It is the first time in as many years since I returned to Saudi Arabia that I saw that many patients in a single day, a throwback reminder of my days at the town’s general hospital where I used to see an average of 50 patients a day. The most significant number I saw in a day was – 280 patients. You’ve got to be a super-doc, but then maybe I was in the days when I was young. With nostalgic fondness – I can recall those days when so many patients would swarm over me, some pulling at my sleeves while others were pulling at my hair; “Doctor, ana aw’wal” (I am the first).
Whenever my colleagues (in the private clinic where I am now) quarrel with our manager/owner, I end up seeing more patients. With the pediatrician having to go on unscheduled leave, 30 patients will be the right order of the day in the days to come. In this town, people call me the “Emir of doctors,” and for some, they call me “al Barraka” or “the miracle worker.” Very flattering indeed!

“Nish won the gold again,” my wife’s text reads.

I was unable to absorb what it meant for a moment. I was so busy that it took another hour before I could steal a precious moment to read the rest of the messages. Nishreen would inform me days before she entered any competition for obvious reasons—there is always some amount to pay. The following few texts, however, made it clear that they were at that very moment in a gym in Pasay City where Nishreen won the gold—again.

As a parent, there is no moment sweeter than news of your child or children triumph in their chosen field, whatever that field of battle might be. We have called Nishreen a lot of lovely names, from a “miracle baby” coming at a time when her mom and I were past our prime to “angel of joy” to “Kikay” as she starts to interact with her surroundings in a way that is blissfully happy. The age difference between her and her next sibling is 16 years meaning her 3 sisters and only brother are all grown-ups; they treated her like a precious gem. It’s no surprise, therefore, that she keeps her siblings always alert on their heels, attending to her every whim.

Her mom, her siblings, and I didn’t demand that she excel in her academics, but she seems to be born with a natural talent that is obviously not your average kind. While still in the process of learning to talk, we demanded that she speak in English just for the heck, but amazingly, she adopted it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.  Her kindergarten teachers shied away from her talkativeness because they could not catch up with her English – LOL!

Kids with access to the latest communication gadgets are exposed to accelerated learning. Like Nishreen, they tend to be fast readers when singing on a minus-one sing-along or when they sing along to a YouTube video with lyrics. When they tinker with their myriad of gadgets and play video games, they read and follow instructions that further boost their mental growth.  

Although her first bundle of medals came at the end of her kindergarten, where she delivered the valedictory address at age 5, she got a few more after that when she moved to RG Montessori as an outstanding pupil. Her chase for more medals took a new turn when she joined a karate club where she receives lessons 1-2x/week. She won her first gold medal six weeks into her classes, followed by a silver four weeks later. Before the end of 2013, she won one more gold medal. Yesterday’s gold is her 4th in less than a year, which began last summer. She is so good at what she does (without really trying) that her club promoted her to skip one belt to a higher level. “Karate” was meant to keep her away from spending too much time with her bundle of electronic gadgets, including an iPad, a PSP, a Samsung Tablet, and a Samsung Galaxy mini, not to mention laptops, around the house.

I hope, though, that her interest in the sport will not affect her academic standing much.









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