"I mean it"s odd isn"t it, when women were doctors they were called witches. There are so many different instances of women physicians being burned at the stake. But that is only true in the western hemisphere. If we go to the east . . . in China, it was ok for women to practice medicine. I hear that women who were well learned were particularly prized. I consider myself to be one of those prized women. That"s why I don"t mind it when they call me a witch. I like using alternative methods in my research and my patients when normal methods don"t work. I guess that makes me witch-y in the eyes of my colleagues.""Do you have an actual license to do surgery?"
"Of course, I have a license. Do you think your excellent Michael would let me near his precious cargo otherwise? How would I get referrals or pay my bills. Take a joke. It was funny. Your face was very very funny."
"How long have you been practicing medicine?"
"Too long." Wu admitted to herself around another sip. "I started after sustaining an injury. My teacher told me to go into ch.o.r.eography. But that would make me die. I spent a lot of time around doctors. No one really knew what was wrong with my ankles for years. So I went to a monastery in China and cried, trying to learn from the monks there. Then I had one of the elder monks take pity for me. And he did acupuncture and traditional medicine with some you know bugs and eggsh.e.l.ls. And I was able to rotate my ankles again. I could have gone back to dancing, but I heard the call of medicine and once you do you can"t go back."
"Don"t you think about going back?"
"To ballet and performing on the stage? Oh of course. I"m human. I do think it would be lovely. But then I look at my feet. The only reason I can do what I like is because of alternative medicine finding me when regular medicine could not. One of my goals is to find the cross where the two meet so I can help more patients who are like me and slipped through the cracks. I want to make sure that dated practices are discontinued and also to find which traditional ones are valid." A soft light had began to dance in her eyes. "You know I wasn"t kidding about the apple. I really have paid some patients to eat an apple a day to see if it affects flus and colds. It"s not particularly helpful. It"s just another piece of fruit. But you know peppermint oil for irritable bowl syndrome. That works wonders."
Nolan watched her entranced. He couldn"t believe his luck in finding such a diamond in the rough to get his sister back to health. To be honest, he thought she would shimmer out of existence. That all of this had been a dream and his sister still lay on her deathbed.