A Touching Piano Performance:
The New Year piano performance I heard with a friend, who was back from abroad on vacation, is still ringing in my ears now. Three or four pieces were played including “Arigatou (Thank you),” which was a tremendous hit of last year. What was most remarkable, moreover, was that the player was an unknown young man in his 20s. He had moved from the Kansai area to Tokyo last year, and his current occupation has nothing to do with music.
The moment he began to play, the beauty and strength of the tune struck us so much that tears came to our eyes. My friend was having difficulty controlling her tears. The player himself was shedding tears while playing the piano. The entire hall was filled with an atmosphere of warmhearted sympathies and fascination. For me, it was a great discovery that the sound of music strikes the minds and hearts of listeners so much. The sound of the music emanating from the piano must have struck a chord in the heart of my friend sitting next to me, because of common hardships they bore in silence. I thought a beautiful mind brings out the best of another mind. And the thought took me back to the starting point of my clinical practice.

Believing in Humanity:
My mentor in acupuncture gives consistent guidance on handling the needle when attending to patients. It is because what we have in our minds is silently transmitted through the needle to the minds of the patients we attend to. It is indeed an awe-inspiring truth, especially in the Hokushin-kai system in which only one single needle is used for the treatment.
It goes without saying that skill and theoretical knowledge are important in this profession, but what counts the most is the heart. Dr. Rempu Fujimoto, my mentor, says in his book “Benshaku Shindo Hiketsu-shu (The Secrets of Acupuncture Treatment)” that the most important thing for a practitioner is to train to bring out one’s essential self. He also says that following one’s essential self means to help both oneself and the whole universe thrive together. “Let us pray for success in this effort together,” he says. The life of each human being without exception carries a glowing noble character. Only through committing ourselves to sustaining this character, we can hope to bring it out successfully.
Learning from Patients:

I feel grateful to each patient who visits my clinic and inspires me. The moment patients open the door and enter my clinic, I can make a rough guess at what is troubling them by just looking at their faces. Human beings are basically very honest, because it is actually possible to detect physical or mental problems through the eyes of the patient and the aura that emanates from him or her.

As I hear the happy voices and see the relieved expressions of my patients, I feel determined to spread the merit of acupuncture treatment to many more people like them struggling with worries. So, with permission from each patient, I wish to continue to write and introduce in plain language on line the cases I handle this year. This is my New Year’s resolution.

Still Active at Age 99:
Not long ago, I watched on television Dr. Shigeaki Hinohara whom I hold in high esteem. At age 99, he is still active as a medical doctor and gives care to terminal cancer patients. His astounding vigor, mild manners, keen faculty of hearing, smile of a young man glued me to the program as he uttered each word.

I wish to quote some of his unforgettable words here:
“Instead of telling the patient to hold out to the end, just try to feel empathy with him/her…,” “Things that are really important remain invisible to us…,” “I say ‘bye for now” always thinking of the next meeting…,” “I want all kids to think seriously about death….” These plain words expressed his thoughts, but it is very difficult to get to their bottom. Dr. Hinohara always tries to plant these and other words in the mind of each patient with a hope that they will remain there as an unquenchable light.

He talks to a patient suffering from cancer of the pancreas in the terminal stage. The patient has remained in his own shell and has never talked even with his family members. Dr. Hinohara’s natural way of talking is accompanied with a smile and evinces no effort to persuade or impose. Eight days after the meeting with the doctor, the patient dies. Looking back, his wife recollects, “The fact that a smile came back to my husband’s face helped me feel at ease. He definitely changed after he met Dr. Hinohara. The doctor’s words saved him from the fear of death, or helped him to believe in the other world…,” she says in appreciation.

Ms. N, a Purehearted Woman like a Young Girl:
In the year 2010, I was given opportunities to be at the departing moment of four respectable patients. On these occasions, I was told about unforgettably moving experiences of the patients themselves and their families.

On March 30th, Ms. N, who was of the same age as I myself, succumbed to a long illness. It was multiple organ failures. I was able to talk with her for hours about many things just a few days before her death. In her bed, she listened to the radio and gathered lots of information on local foodstuffs. So much so that she did not lack any knowledge about food items. I had never talked with her for such a long time on anything other than sickness.
“Dear doc, I am eating lots of things on the radio,” said she with a happy smile on her face. It was unbelievable that somebody who was not able to eat anything could smile in such an attractive manner. I cannot forget her smile. What a strong character! So thinking, I tenderly grasped her thin and weak hands with deep respect. Every time I listen to Kana Uemura’s song “Toireno Kamisama (The Goddess of the Toilet),” its lyrics remind me of the purehearted smile of Ms. N.

Ms. H, Who Never Gave up:
On April 27th, Ms. H, aged 64, overcame her cancer against which she had fought bravely for 16 years. Early in the suffering stage, her doctor had said one week was left for her. Then his estimate somehow grew longer and longer like “she had only one more month” to live, and then to “till about the end of the year.” Thus, Ms. H’s life was given up six or seven times by the doctor. But one day, when he asked her how she was feeling, she promptly responded, “I will live, doctor!”
The doctor was astounded by her life power. “Strange, indeed. I wonder where that power comes from,” he said, giving up any more attempt to predict about her life. Even immediately after her death, she looked plump and tender, belying her fight against cancer. She had kept saying, “I must fight and win for my daughter….” Her daughter had said, “My mother is far more important to me than my own life….”
Thus, mother and daughter fought together courageously against cancer. Blessed with such a close-knit family relationship, the mother departed completely satisfied. I cannot help but put my hands together in prayer for her peaceful rest.

A Close-knit Family in Eternal Relationships:
Ms. M passed away in November. She died after suffering a brain contusion. At the beginning of the year, she fell at her workplace and had a strong blow to the head.
For a 10 long months she struggled one hard day after another with her parents. As her medical caretaker, I made house calls on her and gave her advice and treatment based on the guidance received from my mentor. She gradually became able to move her eyes, shed tears, and to show emotions. But she passed away.
At her funeral service on November 18th, she was peacefully resting with a beautiful expression I had ever seen, encircled with colorful flowers. I was not able to take my eyes off her face as if I was looking at an attractive bride at a wedding ceremony. Her look went a long way toward soothing the pain of her parents, who calmly accepted her death. Her father said, “She taught us many things, indeed.”
It is indeed very difficult for me to describe her parents’ love and caring for her.

Ms. S, Who Was Always Thankful, No Matter What:
On December 4th, Ms. S, who had been our patient since my late mother was actively practicing, passed away. She suffered from four kinds of heart problems plus
troubled gallbladder. Her family as well as herself had trusted absolutely in the merit of acupuncture treatment. In her terminal stage, I was allowed to see her in the ICU (intensive care unit) and continue to give treatment in the care unit. At age 80, she showed unbelievable life power and kept living, always saying, “Thank you. I have nothing but thanks to you.” The sight of her daughter, who so dedicatedly looked after her suffering mother, still remains very vivid in my memory.
I myself can keenly feel and understand the sorrow of losing one’s beloved mother, with whom one has lived for many years. While receiving the acupuncture treatment, Ms. S recovered her physical strength more than once, even became able to enjoy eating, which was literally miraculous. On November 18th, her daughter and I raised our hands with cheers of “banzai” in the ICU. I’ll never be able to forget the emotions I felt at that moment. Then she quietly breathed her last, embraced in the arms of her daughter. Her doctor and nurse watched with a surprised look.

All these patients unexceptionally ended their lives after fulfilling their individual missions beautifully. Their marvelous expressions at the end of their lives seemed to prove this fact, which helped me realize anew the value of acupuncture/moxibustion treatment. I put my palms together in prayer that I will be able to meet them again somewhere sometime in the future.

I also would like to thank those who kept reading my columns during the year of 2010.