Mary and I just got out of surgery. we stood in on the removal of a breast mass and a oral mass. none were believed to be cancerous. it was not my designated day to post, but hearing story after story of the people here wears on me after a while. i need to share.
saoly, an CNA in the OR answered many of our questions. he also shared with us his experience from the khemer rouge. he talked of how he witnessed starvation and cannibalism. he told us of how his father died at his side from starvation. though saoly surrvived, he experienced much pain throughout pol pot's regime. he showed us his scars from coining. coining is a traditional cambodian pain reliever. many people here in cambodia still do it today. they take burning hot coins and rub them on their bodies to distract them from the pain they are having in another area.
saoly's story is just another example of how strong willed the cambodian people are. they have persevered through so much misfortune, yet still manage to live and be happy. or as the cambodians would say "sok-sop-bai", (well and happy)
oh, and a special shout out to Go Gold Battalion at vandy. thanks for staying updated on my super high speed hooah adventures. and thank you Mrs. Shelby for commenting. your patho class has come in handy here. i feel very prepared assessing the different diseases :) i hope you come to my commissioning too!