I was born in Africa in 1974 from a vietnamese father and a canadian mother. I grew up in Gatineau and i went to Mont-Bleu school. I studied medicine in Sherbrooke. I dedicate my life to my work and, through it, i try to heal people and alleviate their suffering. I traveled a lot, in Continue reading “The rise of intolerance…”
Author Archives: martinphamdinh
Calcio storico…
is probably the most violent team sport in the world.It is a traditional game from Florence, Italy, that has been around for many centuries, celebrated and respected. The game is still played by men who train year round for the privilege to play two maybe three games. Many of them will not walk out ofContinue reading “Calcio storico…”
The gift of bread…
There is nothing simpler than a piece of bread. And yet making it can be an art. And yet, eating it can be a source of great pleasure. This Christmas, i decided to give the gift of bread to my friends and family. I love the idea of taking something simple like flour and, throughContinue reading “The gift of bread…”
An understanding of now…
In the last year, my objective has been to slow down. I have written over and over about the frenetic pace of our lives. Honestly, i gave it a try. Honestly, i failed miserably. I do and i am involved in more stuff than i did last year. I am like this, passionate about manyContinue reading “An understanding of now…”
Love in the post modern world…
Love has not changed. The way to get there has. More choice, more freedom, less shame, more time. “In an age with too many choices, very little fear of pregnancy and disease and no feeling of shame, people are taking their time to love. There is an expansion of the pre-committment phase. Marriage used toContinue reading “Love in the post modern world…”
The end of fairy tales…
With the passage of time, I have learned to no longer believe in fairy tales. I am at a stage in my life where the couples around me are in difficulty. Some are separating and many are questioning themselves. People of my generation got married in their twenties. After a more than decade of livingContinue reading “The end of fairy tales…”
On raising kids well…
Great conversation about what are kids really need to grow into happy adults…Let them play. Give them chores. Let go of checklist parenting. And above all, love them as they are.
On the future of schools…
School has to evolve and complexity is not an excuse anymore because we have the tools to allow every child to learn and progress at his own personnal speed.
A gift for my son…
The best gift I can give to my child to help him grow up well and become a good person is to find my happiness, to be honest and generous with myself and the people around me. Original post Facebook, 2016
The cycles of life…
On the last hour of the last day of a memorable 10 day family vacation, as i’m driving between Montebello and Gatineau, i am thinking…The late afternoon sun is slowly setting in the sky. We are listening to classical music in the car. Zack and Liam, the young cousins, are reading quietly. After an entireContinue reading “The cycles of life…”
On slowing down…
I was a cottage yesterday evening. I was drinking a glass of good Cuban Rhum and talking with a good friend while we were hypnotized by the flames dancing in the fire and warmed by it’s radiant heat. We had a cottage day with the kids: no TV, no internet, no cell phone, no emails,Continue reading “On slowing down…”
Fatbike basics 101…
I just came back from a superb long bike ride in the Gatineau park with a friend. I notice the popularity of fat bikes is just exploding and it is easy to understand why… Cross country skiing on 1,5 cm of snow sucks. Downhill skiing is complicated with all the safety rules. What’s left: fatbikeContinue reading “Fatbike basics 101…”
A dance with death…
In the flow of the emergency room… and another dance with death… Recently i was working in the emergency room, doing this wonderful job that i love so much and doing what i do best: serving people, helping them, relieving pain and suffering. Every day is different but still, there is a certain routine inContinue reading “A dance with death…”
On kid’s happyness
Happy kids are all about love and time. Love them. Spend time with them.
The pearls of solutide….
One evening last week after dinner, i took my mountain bike and headed for the Gatineau park. It was a beautiful spring evening. The sun was low in the sky and the light was creating a magical atmosphere in the forest. The colors were vibrant. The woods felt alive. I felt alive. I remember vividlyContinue reading “The pearls of solutide….”
The ER on Christmas evening or the magic of ROSC…
Do you know what ROSC means? This is the reason we work. It means Return Of Spontaneous Circulation. It means that someone was dead, without any circulation and came back to life. This is beautiful. A rare miracle that we got to enjoy on this Christmas day. For this to happen, one must have aContinue reading “The ER on Christmas evening or the magic of ROSC…”
Why I write?
This reflection is recurring in my thoughts and it evolves over the years. It changes as I do. Tonight, a friend took the time to write a nice comment on my writing style, basically saying he appreciated my thoughts, my post. My answer was short “My writing is just an honest expression of how IContinue reading “Why I write?”
My first Christmas dinner one-on-one with my son…
Despite the pandemic, despite the distanciation orders, I decided to make this a memorable day for me and my son. Despite the rain, we went skiing. It was pouring rain and we had so much fun! When the rain started, everybody left…except us and it felt like we had the mountain just for ourselves. MyContinue reading “My first Christmas dinner one-on-one with my son…”
The chick project 2016
I am a future Dad, in 2 weeks I will have laid chicks.You can see that I still have the heart of a child… (…) The miracle of life, the hatching of a chick… A moment of great beauty and so simple. (…) (…) (…) Goodbye little chicks… My little chicks, you are like myContinue reading “The chick project 2016”
The great canadian bungee…
Again, let’s visit the discomfort zone. This second time, i am much calmer than 10 years ago. It is always an intense feeling to look down 200 feet and just throw yourself down, feel the acceleration, see the ground coming then feeling the strength of the elastic band pull you up. Why bungee jumping? ThroughContinue reading “The great canadian bungee…”
Powerful words on pain, distress and sadness…
This is so profound, I need to share it. “Beyond the very extremes of fatigue, pain, distress and sadness, we may find amounts of ease and power that we never dreamed ourselves to own, sources of strength not taxed at all, because we never pushed through the obstruction” – William James
On longevity, happiness and the people of our lives…
80 years ago, Stanford researcher started to follow 1500 children to determine what would make them live longer. 80 years later, the longevity project finds health has more to do with happiness than cholesterol. http://www.howardsfriedman.com/longevityproject/ 75 years ago, Harvard researcher started to follow 700 young men to determine what would make them happy. 75 yearsContinue reading “On longevity, happiness and the people of our lives…”
How sometimes we touch other people’s life…
A lady comes to see me in the emergency room with tears in her eyes. I have just hospitalized her mother in palliative care and I took the time to call her to tell her the news, her mother’s decision, her condition, her expected death soon. So she went to her bedside. She told me:Continue reading “How sometimes we touch other people’s life…”
About fresh food…
One of the person who inspires me when i think about cooking is Geoffroy Charbonneau, chef at L’Indocile. He is like a brother to me. Over and over, he reminds me of one thing: cooking with fine fresh food is one of the most important step when we are preparing a food for the family.Continue reading “About fresh food…”
Another dance with death…
Another busy shift in the ER brings another series of surprises. Such is emergency medicine, filled with the unexpected… This man i saw yesterday with abdominal pain, he feels much better this morning but i must tell him that his pain, it’s not his gallbladder stones, it’s cancer, terminal metastatic, inoperable cancer. He is inContinue reading “Another dance with death…”
Martin Pham Dinh 