Vancouver, tooth picks and Teri’s award – please donate

 Vancouver 11/5-11/14

                                 

Dad and I ate many simple Chinese comfort foods – won ton noodles – even those are discernably better than the best in the States.  We ate at two of the three top Dim Sum restaurants in Vancouver, Fisherman’s Terrace and Kirin.  We hosted one Shanghai-style banquet with shrimp, whole fish and crab – Teri’s favorites – for Dad’s friends including Chinese artists, art critic, art historian, and two former graduate students. 

Despite the seasonal rain and drizzle (7 out of 10 days), I ran twice outside and otherwise ellipticized and practiced Tai Chi.  I read Haruki Murakami’s Wind Up Bird Chronicle (intriguing, difficult to describe) and Ha Jin’s Nanjing Requiem historical fiction about the 1937 WWII massacre.  I learned that Dad was there until 5 months before and had he stayed another 10 days, would have been trapped there …  The book used actual names including Minnie Vautrin who protected nearly 10,000 women and children refugees housed at Jinling College.  The book mentioned Eva Spicer, one my Mom’s professors, who she saw again in 1963 in London.  I gave a talk at BC Children’s.

I learned more about my mother from her Jinling College roommate (90+) but was saddened to learn that her husband had died since we last visited.  In the vernacular of 70-90 year olds, chronic illness, hospitalization, disability, end-of-life, and passing were topics du jour.  I can relate.

More closure and reengagement

With Cindy’s help, we organized a celebration of Teri’s life for her Chinese woman’s group Gan Bei (‘bottoms up’) on the 18^th.  I left up the photomontage from the Open House.  Caroline and Eduardo, Kun, Lorraine, Ada and Cecelia, and Tina came for pot stickers, egg roles, fried noodles and dessert.  There was high energy and some tears.  It was something left to do on my ‘closure list’. 

The Gan Bei group brought an abundance of desserts that segued into an impromptu dessert night for neighbors the following day.

Kari, Ben and Rachel’s violin teacher in Columbus for 10+ years, and Ron, invited us over the next night for dinner. 

Seems like we are reengaging, we minus one.

Thanksgiving

Ben returned home for Thanksgiving.  He studied intensely every free moment, following lectures off-line, listening to pod casts, making note cards on his new HTC Rezound smart phone.  It is quite something to experience vicariously his challenges that are both similar and dissimilar (multimedia, much more genetics) to those from my ancient past.  He really enjoys the intellectual challenge, the social experience (group study). and the humanistic (ethical) dilemmas encountered.

Ben and I played ping pong, one of our core family activities in Columbus, at Spin, a nationwide chain combination ping pong palace, restaurant, and bar.  Imagine that you get a bucket of balls, can slam them at will, and someone else retrieves them and refills your bucket.  It was fun. 

We had our usual Thanksgiving turkey with the Koslov/Fulton clan (20+) in Madison preceded by THE best comfort chicken and matzo ball soup.  Steve had his 7^th annual trivia contest “Where was the French horn invented?”  “Where did banana hats originate?”  I spent time with one of my mentors Ray (and Memee) who recently developed AML and is undergoing chemotherapy, and son Michael, spouse Tina, and grandchildren Steven and Maddie from Seattle.  Our experience with neutropenic precautions has been useful for them.  We hope for the best. 

[Germany, Ecuador]

Charlotte and Bob invited us over for a post-Thanksgiving dinner of chicken with a sweet soy basting much like my mother’s.

Toothpicks

Teri typically cleaned between her teeth with Japanese toothpicks (carved at the non-pointed end) after dinner, and to my chagrin, would leave them by her place setting in order to reuse them.  When I was in Vancouver, I discovered one barely visible perched atop a thin ledge next to the bathroom sink.  Was it there before?  It has been 16 months since our last visit.  I chuckled when I saw it.  Typical Teri.  Was she there with us in Vancouver?

Then, when we were setting up for Teri’s Gan Bei celebration, I noticed one placed under her usual place setting.  I sit there now.  I don’t remember using one.  If I do, I don’t save them.  Was she here with us?  Mysterious …

Award in Teri’s name

I had a flash.  Teri’s passions, were children, education and service.  Amongst our NASPGHAN (North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition - I'm the immediate past president) members, the bulk of our young academics are choosing to become clinician-educators.  We have awards for research, life time achievement and service, but none for budding educators.  Why not have an annual award to honor educational contributions by a young pediatric gastroenterologist – Teri Li Award in Education?  I vetted this with our educational gurus and executive council.  They like the idea.  We would like to start it up next year.

We propose a $500 annual award and an initial goal to raise a $5,000 - 10,000.  If successful, we would like to aim for funding to support pilot educational grants. 

Please donate to this award in Teri’s name.

NASPGHAN Foundation – Teri Li Education Fund

NASPGHAN

1501 Bethlehem Pike

PO Box 6

Flourtown, PA  19031

Teri would be embarrassed for herself, but pleased as an educator.