MARCH 10-11, 2012 WE ALL ARE PART OF HISTORY

"The pain passes, but the beauty remains." - Pierre Auguste Renoir

Thanks Karen. This quote is definitely applied to an event in history. I was present during this event in history in 1985. The pain has passed from the trauma, and the beauty remains. The pain also involves the death of parent. Today I see the beauty of the place I lived from 1982- 1985. I went to this remote island after a tragedy. Because of the insistence of my father and family and financial help at that time, today I practice this G.O.D. chosen profession. I love talking to people. I love the medicine I practice today.

We all are part of history in a way. Where were you when JFK was assassinated? Did you watch man land on the moon on July 20, 1969 on your small television? Did you attend the 1964-65 NY World's Fair at Flushing Meadow Park? Where were you on Friday July 13, 1977 when Elvis Presley died? I was in Venice Italy.

In the summer of 1982, I left JFK International Airport for the Isle of Spice, Grenada to attend medical school. I had been on 3 US medical school wait lists , but I didn't want to wait. Part of the urgency was my father. I would have waited but my mother had died on June 10, 1982. Both my father and I performed CPR. At almost 21, I no longer had a mother. She died at age 51 from a sub arachnoid hemorrhage. My father felt if I didn't go somewhere to medical school, I might never go. In retrospect, he was correct. My family gathered at the airport to say good-bye.

I shared a dorm room with 3 other students, Pat (Big Pat), Matt and Roy. We studied under (to say the least) rural conditions-- sometimes with no light and no running water. The campus was called True Blue. I fell in love with the island. Its beauty and its culture. I fell in love with nature all over again. Today, as an herbalist, I wish I had paid more attention to the Bougainvillea, the Angel trumpets and the Jungle Flames (aka 'Ixora). My mates and I moved off campus near Calabash Beach/ Red Crab Restaurant and rented a house from Dr. Radix. It was magnificent. I slept in a hammock in my room on the second floor.

On October 12, 1985, the political state of chaos in Grenada began, when the government under Prime Minister Maurice Bishop collapsed. Bishop had gained power in 1979. These days were chaotic. Marshal Law was declared and Maurice Bishop and others were murdered on or about October 16-18th . Suddenly outside our home next to the Yellow high bushes of Angel Trumpets was a soldier in full regatta armed with a rifle and grenades. Only days before, my father and my friend Antoinette's brother left the island after a 10 day vacation. Big Pat also went home for a break.

Within days, these soldiers moved us to the last house on our street close to the Hotel Calabash. It was a good thing, as one house was destroyed by a missile. I actually placed myself on the upper shelf of a closet for safe keeping. I cannot recall if that was int he Radix house where we lived or the house we then went to. There was so much gunfire, noise and screaming outside. With little of our belongings, we all crept on the ground and went to break into the hotel for a safe dwelling. Or was it? In the early morning hours of October 25, over nineteen hundred marines (82nd Airborne) landed on Grenada to begin a large scale evacuation of 1000 US citizens. I do not think the United States knew how many US citizens were at the medical school and could not know how many students were living on and off campus.

The action taken by the United States has been characterized as deplorable and grotesque by the world communities, however the US public reacted favorably. I believe that day when the 82nd airborne landed on the Calabash beach with helicopters, my guardian angel, my mother was there. Four United States Marines surrounded each of us and whisked us into the helicopter. We flew to the 'new' airport which was being built by Russians, Cubans, and others.

I will never forget that day, nor the preceding days. I sometimes do not want to recall those days. We landed at Fort Bragg unshaven, unkempt and exhausted. The Red Cross greeted us. We called our parents. I called my Dad. I was never so relieved to hear his voice. I wish I could hear his voice today. I was relieved to see my Long Island family. My cousin, Thomas kept a record of all the events with articles and photographs from magazines and newspapers. I still have the files/album that he made from 1985.

I haven't been back to Grenada since the invasion. Will I ever return? I do not know. I would return with my colleagues. I finished my medical training in London, United Kingdom. An article in MACE 2012 by Stan Sujka, MD about the Flowers of Grenada caught my attention. I loved the nature of the island. The hummingbirds, bees and other insects buzzed all around. The white sand at Grand Anse Beach was breathtaking. There is an abundance of Poinsettias on the island. Poinsettia are not as toxic as people describe. They can cause an allergic rash and even diarrhea if ingested. Be careful of your pets during the holy season.

One of my patients volunteers her time on the island. Perhaps in the future Rick and I will go and explore, assist and volunteer our time with the children of Grenada.

Until tomorrow...