Dr Mark Jabbusch presents a certificate to one student for completing the MEDRIX Short Course in Medical Terminology at Hue City, Vietnam
HUE CITY, Vietnam: Dr Mark Jabbusch has completed training doctors in the MEDRIX Short Course in English Medical Terminology. Yet through developing a mutual language in their shared profession, Dr Jabbusch discovered a bond with his students and colleagues of a kind he had not reckoned for.
Dr Jabbusch tells his story:
“You know all so well what it is like when you have gathered on retreat for several days running (this week it was for five days) and there has been a program that people signed up for, expecting to learn something new, but not fully expecting the closeness by the end.
“Well something happened this week. Closing of the course was tonight and I am still not sure all what happened. What I do know is there was a shared closeness (couched mostly in our relationship as doctors) that went beyond anything I could have brought to the table.
“There was a building trust and depth of sharing to the end point when I shared about love. One of the docs had earlier asked me ‘why I had come’. I hadn’t answered well; I decided to try again in my closing.
“I had been working them over with Greek and Latin derivations as part of the way to learn and pronounce medical terms. So I ventured into the four Greek words for ‘love’ at the end:
- Building from a love we all have for family and clan (very strong over here);
- To eros love (another reason I had traveled half way around the world and given of my time to be here… to see Barbara tomorrow);
- To brotherly love (which I could tie into the sharing we had done this week as physicians);
- And finally to agape love.
“With this I could share that I have known unconditional love, and that it was not mine to keep, but to share. I held that out as long as I thought I could pause, then reaped a lot of hugs and tears and a celebratory (I could only wish it were a fully agape) dinner. I wanted to name the giver of this unconditional love - I made it clear it didn’t originate in me – but I didn’t get that far. Only when my new friend and driver dropped me off at my hotel tonight, I asked if I could give him a blessing. I have idea what I said or what he heard.
“The credit, the timing, the results are not mine. I’d love to have time here to get any more feedback from the participants… we’ll see.
“I do know that ‘surely the presence is in this place’.”
Mark.
