Ran into one of my old patients the other day. I had looked after this lady with a congenital heart defect, with resultant pulmonary hypertension, in my internship cardiology rotation. That would have been August 2002. Her husband was a country singer, and they gave me a copy of his CD when she was discharged.

Then, over 2 years later, on one of my not-so-good days, I had dinner with friends at one of the restaurants in town. It was a tough day, with some sick patients who were not doing well. While waiting for our table, I noticed this familiar looking couple eyeing me.

Turns out, it was them. And they remembered me by name. She's doing relatively well now, back here just for a follow-up.

It's funny, how on days when you're feeling tired and discouraged, how the person upstairs surprises you with little things to keep you going.

That made my day.

And all of a sudden, I remembered why I love this job.