Diary of a Dr. Red Nose – The Power of Family Feedback
One day, we headed as usual to the familiar A Ward area at Taipei Veterans General Hospital. We paraded and played, passing by the room of our old friend—Lulu. Lulu had been staying in the A Ward area for a long time, and all the nurses knew her well. In fact, it would be fair to say that there was no one who didn’t know her.
When we arrived that day, she hadn’t gotten up yet. Lulu’s mom pushed open the door and said that Halloween the previous week had coincided with a typhoon, so the performance had been canceled. Then, on the night of the typhoon, Lulu suddenly woke up crying, making her think Lulu had had a nightmare. She asked, “Are you okay?”
Unexpectedly, Lulu replied, “Because of the typhoon, the clowns won’t come tomorrow. I’m so sad.” Lulu’s mom told us with a mixture of amusement and tears, “See how important Dr. Red Nose are to her.”
So that day, Lulu and we agreed that the following week we would make up the Halloween costume parade that we had missed because of the typhoon.
The following week, filled with anticipation, we put on the special Halloween costumes we had prepared and walked toward the ward under everyone’s gaze, ready to fulfill our promise. As soon as we entered the ward, Lulu looked a little tired. Bunny Mom gently asked, “Would you like to parade with the Medical Clown?” Lulu immediately put on her costume and tried hard to get up and prepare to get out of bed.
Lulu’s mom told us, “Before this, Lulu hadn’t gotten out of bed or walked for four days, but she wanted to parade with you.”
At the end of the day, after taking off our clown costumes and getting ready to leave, we ran into Lulu’s mom at the nurses’ station. Smiling, she said, “After Lulu finished parading with you, as soon as you left, she said, ‘It hurts so much! I want to sit down.’”
My partner and I looked at each other, amazed that the Halloween parade just now had not only gone around the ward several times, but also included playing with other children along the way. The entire experience was filled with laughter and energy.
It is an honor to become a source of emotional support for others, and it is also a responsibility. Lulu’s mom’s sharing gave me an extra measure of confidence and courage on my journey as a Medical Clown. At the same time, I kept reminding myself that I have a responsibility: “Dragonfly” must always be there.
The people we meet in hospitals may be connected to Dragonfly because of certain qualities, and those qualities can become a source of support for them. Therefore, before that connection disappears, I have a responsibility to ensure that “Dragonfly” continues to exist well—to take good care of myself and remain in a good state in every way.
I will keep this feedback in my heart, constantly reminding myself to move forward step by step with gratitude and sincerity.
*Text adapted from a story told by Dragonfly (Yeh Wei-Chih), a Dr. Red Nose
*The photo shows Dragonfly performing and is unrelated to the people in the story
We need you—together, let’s keep the warmth going ?
🔴 Adopt a smile and support our mission: event.drn.org.tw/xmdp
🔴 Choose a thoughtful gift and double the care: event.drn.org.tw/spxm