Truthful Tuesday
While talking about weddings at the hospital, someone asked the attending physician how big his wedding was. Our attending, an older Australian gentleman with a head of white hair, smiled as he remembered his wedding. “One hundred ten people,” he answered. And then he mentioned that his wedding actually got into the papers and the news the following day. His wife was somewhat of a celebrity back in the day and their wedding was news.
We asked what sort of celebrity she was. Our attending smiled again and modestly answered that she had won a few competitions. Perhaps he would have left it at that, but our curiosity prompted him to offer further explanation, I’m sure.
His wife had won beauty pageants and had actually won a crown there in Melbourne, Australia. As a result, she was often in the news and attended functions all over Australia and was even sent to Hollywood for a photo shoot.
One medical student asked him what was needed to land a beauty queen. He told us that after she won her crown she began working at the hospital he was training at. She worked with fundraising. At the time, he was doing a year of pediatrics.
He said he heard about this beauty pageant winner working in the office. After a month or two of working up the courage, he finally marched into the office and said hello. She asked if she could help him. “Maybe,” was his reply.
He asked her on a date and she agreed. That first date went “alright” and she agreed to a second. And the rest is history.
It was nice watching the old doctor reminisce about someone he obviously loves dearly. He showed us a couple pictures on his iPhone — of her then and of her older. And then showed us a book that he made on Blurb. It was a life sketch of his wife. At the end there was a more recent picture with him, his wife, and their 3 kids.
And then he mentioned that this was before she died.
The entire time I thought that he was talking about a woman who was still alive. I had no idea she had already passed away. The way he talked about her and smiled about her gave me no reason to think she was not around anymore.
I don’t know why I’m sharing this. Maybe because I’m struck by the balls it took for him to just walk up to a reigning beauty queen and ask her out. Maybe because part of me was moved by how fondly he talks of a woman no longer with him — a woman who still has the ability to bring a smile to his face.
And maybe, I hope for something like that too.
