As Mary Oliver says in her poem, “I do not know exactly what prayer is.” What I do know is that when we pray, we invoke something greater than our current selves; we drop into a deep sense of gratitude for all that we already have; and we ask for the support that we need …Read More
Author: Dr. Joel Ying, MD
Physician-Educator-Storyteller. Integrating the power of story into medicine, healing sessions, workshops, speaking and performance.
Joy and Grief ~ Raspberries and Bananas
We shake with joy, We shake with grief. What a time they have, these two housed as they are in the same body. ~ Mary Oliver Raspberry blood redTears in the supermarketNo more bananas There are some things that you can’t prepare for. Sheila walked into the supermarket. It was a weekly visit, a leisurely trip. She …Read More
My Personal Prayer for 2022
On this second day of the new year, I step into the ritual of looking at the year ahead. I celebrate beginnings and endings in the same way that I marvel at the sunrise and the sunset, marking time with their beauty. Today, I sink into my intention for the year. From a place of …Read More
This changes everything…
During my training as a doctor, I spent several months in the Pediatric Emergency Room. Babies with fever, kids with diarrhea and dehydration, asthmatics with breathing attacks — the common problems were common. The Director of the Pediatric Emergency Department was a thin woman, blonde, and well-organized. She never missed a day of work. The …Read More
New Year Intentions ~ New Normal
In March of 2019, with a pandemic looming on the horizon in the United States, I decided this was a good time to take a break. (I was determined to make the most of a strange situation. How long could this last anyway?) I rested, then I watched video courses on Storytelling from home. Then, …Read More
Let Every Day Be Christmas
Let Every Day Be Christmas ~ by Norman Wesley Brooks Christmas is forever, not for just one day,for loving, sharing, giving, are not to put awaylike bells and lights and tinsel, in some box upon a shelf.The good you do for others is good you do yourself. Peace on Earth, good will to men,kind thoughts …Read More
Ode to My Socks ~ Pablo Neruda
Ode to My Socks by Pablo Neruda (1904-1973) Maru Mori brought mea pairof sockswhich she knitted herselfwith her sheepherder’s hands,two socks as softas rabbits.I slipped my feetinto themas though intotwocasesknittedwith threads oftwilightand goatskin.Violent socks,my feet weretwo fish madeof wool,two long sharkssea-blue, shotthroughby one golden thread,two immense blackbirds,two cannons:my feetwere honoredin this waybytheseheavenlysocks.They wereso handsomefor the first …Read More
Thanksgiving ~ Edgar Guest
Thanksgiving~ by Edgar Guest (1881-1959) Gettin’ together to smile an’ rejoice,An’ eatin’ an’ laughin’ with folks of your choice;An’ kissin’ the girls an’ declarin’ that theyAre growin’ more beautiful day after day;Chattin’ an’ braggin’ a bit with the men,Buildin’ the old family circle again;Livin’ the wholesome an’ old-fashioned cheer,Just for awhile at the end of …Read More
Thinking ~ Walter Wintel
Thinking~ by Walter D. Wintle If you think you are beaten, you areIf you think you dare not, you don’t,If you like to win, but you think you can’tIt is almost certain you won’t. If you think you’ll lose, you’re lostFor out of the world we find,Success begins with a fellow’s willIt’s all in the …Read More
Walking Home
As a resident doctor, I remember the intense days with overnight shifts, very little sleep, and emotional roller coasters. Most patients come to the hospital at their lowest. Over time, I just became numb to the endless cycle of new faces with the same problems—chest pain, fever, abdominal pain, shortness of breath, and only sometimes …Read More