QUOTABLES FROM DR. MEREDITH GREY


Grey's Anatomy - Ellen Pompeo

On Pain:

Maybe we like the pain. Maybe we're wired that way. Because without it, I don't know; maybe we just wouldn't feel real. What's that saying? Why do I keep hitting myself with a hammer? Because it feels so good when I stop.



On Intimacy:

Intimacy is a four syllable word for, "Here's my heart and soul, please grind them into hamburger, and enjoy." It's both desired, and feared. Difficult to live with, and impossible to live without. Intimacy also comes attached to the three R's... relatives, romance, and roommates. There are some things you can't escape. And other things you just don't want to know.



On Growing Up:

I've heard that it's possible to grow up - I've just never met anyone who's actually done it. Without parents to defy, we break the rules we make for ourselves. We throw tantrums when things don't go our way, we whisper secrets with our best friends in the dark, we look for comfort where we can find it, and we hope - against all logic, against all experience. Like children, we never give up hope.....



On Denial:

Sometimes reality has a way of sneaking up and biting us in the ass. And when the dam bursts, all you can do is swim. The world of pretend is a cage, not a cocoon. We can only lie to ourselves for so long. We are tired, we are scared, denying it doesn't change the truth. Sooner or later we have to put aside our denial and face the world. Head on, guns blazing. De Nile. It's not just a river in Egypt, it's a freakin' ocean. So how do you keep from drowning in it



On Greed:

I have an aunt who whenever she poured anything for you she would say "Say when". My aunt would say "Say when" and of course, we never did. We don't say when because there's something about the possibility, of more. More tequila, more love, more anything. More is better.



On Happiness:

Maybe we're not supposed to be happy. Maybe gratitude has nothing to do with joy. Maybe being grateful means recognizing what you have for what it is. Appreciating small victories. Admiring the struggle it takes simply to be human. Maybe we're thankful for the familiar things we know. And maybe we're thankful for the things we'll never know. At the end of the day, the fact that we have the courage to still be standing is reason enough to celebrate.


On The Real World:

Surgeons are control freaks. With a scalpel in your hand, you feel unstoppable. There's no fear, there's no pain. You're ten-feet tall and bulletproof. And then you leave the OR. And all that perfection, all that beautiful control, just falls to crap.


On Effective Denial:

The key to surviving a surgical internship is denial. We deny that we're tired, we deny that we're scared, we deny how badly we want to succeed. And most importantly, we deny that we're in denial. We only see what we want to see and believe what we want to believe, and it works. We lie to ourselves so much that after a while the lies start to seem like the truth. We deny so much that we can't recognize the truth right in front of our faces.




On Being Alone:

Four hundred years ago, another well-known English guy had an opinion about being alone. John Donne. He thought we were never alone. Of course, it was fancier when he said it. "No man is an island entire unto himself." Boil down that island talk, and he just meant that all anyone needs is someone to step in and let us know we're not alone. And who's to say that someone can't have four legs. Someone to play with or run around with, or just hang out.



On Excess:

When you were a kid, it was Halloween candy. You hid it from your parents and you ate it until you got sick. In college, it was the heavy combo of youth, tequila and well, you know. As a surgeon, you take as much of the good as you can get because it doesn't come around nearly as often as it should. 'Cause good things aren't always what they seem. Too much of anything, even love, is not always a good thing.




On Communication:

Communication. It's the first thing we really learn in life. Funny thing is, once we grow up, learn our words and really start talking the harder it becomes to know what to say. Or how to ask for what we really need.

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FYI:

Gray's Anatomy is a bulky 2000+++++ page textbook of anatomy used in First Year Medicine. The book is considered the BIBLE in Anatomy, its articles are considered GOSPEL TRUTHS. It used to cost P1,500 during the late 90's but i think its price has trebled now. I never got to own one due to its prohibitive costs. I used to envy my classmates who lugged their Gray's to class as it's considered a medical student's badge.




PAG-SURE MO OI!!!!

Very amazing and scary at the same time. A tennis court on top of the amazing Burj Al Arab(Dubai) structure. See Andre Agassi and the world No. 1, Roger Federer play.











You are invited to eat my house!

DESIDERATA



Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

DONG, YANO and ME



The guy above is Dong Abay, the lead vocals of the pinoy pop-folk-rock-icon, YANO.

While driving home from work today, due to this guy's powerful larynx and strong message (I was listening to all the CD tracks of THE BEST OF YANO 2001), I was transported to turbulent youths of the generation Y, the 90's, my generation and I'm not ashamed to admit that, yes, i have my share of head banging days and laundryless maong pants (the more soiled the better it looks).

YANO, was the icon of my youth. Dong Abay (they said he's a BISDAK but im not sure) was the Yspeaker (moveover Bianca and Ryan) of those times.

As qouted from wikipedia ....

" Yano’s music was well known for their political and social themes. Their songs censure religious hypocrites like in "Banal Na Aso, Santong Kabayo" (Holy Dog, Horse Saint), immoral politicians in "Trapo" (colloqial term for traditional politicians, it also literally translates to a dust rag), the lingo of the Philippine's elite in "Cono Ka P’re" and abusive capitalist in "Mc’Jo". Yano’s songs also narrate the situation of the Philippine society during the 1990s. The song "Kumusta Na" discusses the condition of the Filipino masses after the first EDSA Revolution. The song "Abno", also known as "Abnormal Environmental", tackles on the environment while "Kaklase" focuses on students facing maltreatment by their teachers. Another social relevant song "Mercy" tells about the story of a crazy peddler in the Philippines known as the taong grasa."


I was at the front stage when they had their concert here in Cebu. Dong, then was the epitome of a rock star. He writhes and slide his body on stage with his widely open eyes, making you think that he is the Demon rockstar. I dont know if he was on drugs or was just on purely natural high. And he was not bald, his hair was full and roughly toussled.

BUT Once he start spewing his lyrics of protest, dismay and frustrations, stupid love (........iniwanan ka pala ng young boypren, kasi ayaw nya sa buhok mo......) and of course, the beata song (......banal na aso, santong kabayo...) the crowd goes wild, as I added my shout and my stomp. And boy, headbanging too. I must have gotten my migraines from this.

And that was more than 10 years ago. His "Kumusta na", if sang today would still be answered the same way, nothing happens after EDSA, the same corruption still exists, the same crimes and the same people still rules.

I'm not ashame to say that I was NOT an armchair activist then, I dabbled in student activism, we shouted the same slogans, we use the same propaganda. Nothing changes with their act, only the personalities changes. Makes you wonder, when they are going to overhaul their game plan. It did not work then, it will not work now.

ANd maybe, Dong felt the same way, he went into hiding, in his own bedroom. He did not venture out of his room for 4 years, they say for clinical depression, but i say there is nothing clinical about it, it was of shame that we are still what we are before EDSA or because of frustration that we have'nt been doing what we are supposed to be doing as a country, as a nation and as FILIPINOS. Mabuhay ka YANO! MAbuhay ka DONG!

P.S. Dong Abay has emerged from his bedroom with one son and a new band, uniquely known as dongabay.

THE OPHTHA BANQUET



All eye doctors in the land were summon to
Imperial Manila to
attend a big banquet of knowledge and idea sharing.


The OPhTha Chiefs from the Island of Cebu answered the call,
willingly and eagerly to break the
monotomy of their daily grind


The humble chiefs from the south were billeted
in a very humble dwelling in the
heart of Ortigas.



They were fed exotic foods not found on their islands,
and they did not stopped till their belly aches.



Even in the asphalt jungle of EDSA, crocodiles abound,
watching and waiting while chiefs from other
islands were dining and pigging.




Even their choice of beverage were for the malaria afflicted,
the chiefs were wondering where's the brown water.



While strolling in the Baywalk, amid the myriad of twinkiling lights,
a living statue caught the chief's eyes.
He was not moving at all,
but if you ran away with his pile of coins,
do you think he will not jumped and ran after it?


The chiefs wanted to experience a different tepsichorean show,
and they were happily obliged.


And the chiefs went home, happy with full of baggages of memories
and loads of new things to ponder .