文书点评：委内瑞拉丛林中的小丑医生

From the moment I arrived in Guanare, Venezuela, I experienced the desperation and the discomfort that burdens the people there every day. Long abandoned by a broken-down bus, my team and I were forced to climb a mountain under the relentless sun. Weighed down by a 30-pound backpack containing medical supplies, I fixated on the rest of the day and on reaching the top of the mountain by nightfall. Thinking ahead to the next day was a luxury I could not afford.

The city of Guanare rested at the bottom of the mountain. I had been struck by its dirty, squalid streets and houses topped with corrugated tin roofs. Stray dogs roamed the streets, small children chased passing cars, and mosquitoes and gnats lazily lingered in the sweltering heat. At the top of the mountain, however, existed poverty of another level. There sat a remote community of coffee-bean growers who receive no medical attention and have no means of communication with Guanare, except for a long, steep walk down the mountain. After weeks of correspondence, planning, and preparation with one another from across the globe, my team of 14 had arrived there to make a small imprint on the struggling community and, we hoped, to offer some kind of relief.

On the morning of our first clinic, I was awed by the contrasting images of despair and hope. We were surprised to discover that villagers from miles away had heard about the free clinic and had begun lining up in the first hours of sunlight. Dirty, thin children with bellies distended from parasite infection stood in line alongside elderly adults with open sores in their swollen legs. Spread before them was a team of 14 strangers buoyed by energy and optimism. With donated supplies and medicine that we had garnered from various clinics and hospitals in America, we prepared to perform triage, measure blood pressure, and administer the proper medicines.

That day, I was just as affected by the team doctor, Robert, as I was by the anguish on the patients’ faces. He was a beacon of devotion and sacrifice, and while everyone rotated in and out of shifts for their duties, Robert was the anchor, treating the seemingly endless stream of ill patients with the same enthusiasm he had when the day had dawned. I was just a sophomore in college at the time, and I was wholly inexperienced in a medical capacity. But I sensed all of that changing as I experienced both the hopelessness and the hopefulness that comes with this noble profession. I realized that in my future career as a doctor I wanted to emanate Robert’s grace and dedication, and that in the meantime I would do anything I could to work to alleviate the pain of those who are suffering physically.

Since I could not provide much medical assistance at the clinic, I sought a way to involve myself in the healing that was taking place and to raise the spirits of the downtrodden patients. I donned a baggy shirt, goofy pants, a green wig, and makeup, transforming myself from a medic into a clown. Squeals of delight pealed through the throng of children and adults as I burst out of the door. I began singing and dancing to the songs playing on the Spanish radio station as others smiled and clapped. The tired, sick children giggled, and the stricken elderly patients laughed while I tripped and ran into them in my excitement. Eventually, the children that were well enough to participate joined me in my exploits.

Just like the clinics, the playful enjoyment was a welcome reprieve to the villagers but temporary nonetheless. While our team did a lot of good, eventually we had to leave, and it was painfully clear to me that the patients’ prescriptions would soon run out, and that others would become ill. Soon they would go back to their painful existences without proper medical attention. Another team would eventually come to the mountain and set up another clinic, but the problems would still persist. Until a time when I can participate in the global community, teaching preventative measures to avoid diseases such as parasite infection or malaria, I continue to do what I can for this tiny village. I collect whatever clothes, shoes, and toys I can and send them to the town center.

For as long as I can remember, my inquisitive, nurturing nature led me to entertain the thought of being a doctor. However, after my time in Venezuela, I was resolute. The idea of attending to a neglected population intrigues and excites me. In Venezuela, serving as a vessel of hope and seeing the joy that followed gave me a great sense of satisfaction. I will forever relish the memories of the trust that those patients had in the doctor as he diagnosed their ailments. I value what I learned from Robert himself -- that being a doctor requires sacrifice and determination, but that with it comes the fulfillment of a long day’s work. And I will never forget the innocently hopeful children who danced with me in my green clown wig, for they remind me that at the core of healing is the exuberance that comes with optimism.

点评：

一篇成功的申请文书，其优秀的标准可能有很多条，但其中最重要的一条，就是令人难忘，让人在读完掩卷之后，还能在脑海中浮现出申请者鲜明的形象。《委内瑞拉丛林中的小丑》就做到了这一点。

文章描述了作者大学时候随着一支医疗队伍，来到生存条件艰苦、医疗环境恶劣的委内瑞拉，为一群远离人群的咖啡豆种植者提供义务看诊的经历；以平实而又生动的口吻，记录下自己的所见所闻，也详细描绘了自己内心想法转变。

其实，这一题材并不新鲜，在申请医学院的文书中，很多人都会以自己做志愿者或是参加医疗援助队到某一个需要帮助的地方工作，从而坚定自己的理想；比本文到过更悲惨的地方，比如战场或灾区的文书也是为数不多的。然而为什么本文还能突出自身呢？那是由于一般的场景＋想法的essay，提炼的主题多半是：本来只是想当医生—亲身感受到治病救人的意义—更加坚定自己奉献的心；《委》一文的内容与主题直到第四段被罗伯特医生感动为止，仍是与其他文章没什么两样。其可贵就在于下面文笔一转，描述“我”扮演小丑为病人们带来欢乐，描述这里的恶劣情况可能继续持续的故事，并且从中得出结论，不仅要治疗物理意义上的疾病，还要做一名以乐观与欢笑带给人们心灵慰藉的医生。这样的角度不仅少见，而且也能清晰地刻画出作者自己心路历程的变化：从无知到坚定、再上升到更高的医疗层面，可以给读者展示出这样一个学生的成长。最起码，当人们想到在贫瘠的山顶和一群阴暗悲伤的病人中间，鲜绿色头发的小丑在快乐的舞蹈，这鲜明的对比与感受将使人记住这篇文章和这名申请者。

译文：

委内瑞拉丛林中的小丑

从踏上委内瑞拉Guanare土地的那一刻起，我就感受到了每天沉甸甸压在所有人身上的绝望和痛苦。破车抛锚了，我和我的队伍只好在无情太阳的炙烤下步行上山。背负装满30磅医药补给品的背包，我一直想着今天什么时候能休息，想着黄昏时是否能到达山顶；唯独不敢考虑明天—这太遥远的奢侈。

Guanare这个城市坐落在山脚下。我还记得那里的街道肮脏不堪，一排排房子上摊着皱巴巴的锡皮屋顶，流浪狗在路上四处游荡，幼童们追逐着路过的汽车；在这样的酷热里，蚊子和飞虫们无精打采地在半空盘旋。然而，就在山顶上，还存在着另一种水平的贫穷—一群咖啡豆的种植者，他们远离人群，缺乏医疗看护；除非经过一段漫长、陡峭的下山路程，否则他们与Guanare没有任何交集可言。在全球范围进行了几周的通信、计划和准备后，我们14人的队伍来到这里拜访这群艰苦生活的人，希望能给他们提供某种程度上的帮助。

第一个看诊的早晨，我便对面前这鲜明地交杂着希望和绝望的情形感到敬畏。出乎我们意料的是，数里之外的村民们一听说有义诊，从日出第一刻就开始排成了长队。瘦小、脏兮兮的孩子挺着由于寄生虫感染造成的大肚子，旁边站着年长的人们，肿胀的双腿带着切骨的疼痛。而在他们面前的是14个陌生人，满怀乐观精神和一身力量，藉由美国许多诊所和医院捐赠的药物和仪器，开始准备治疗方案、测量血压和发放合适的药品。

那天，当我看着病人们的脸庞感到忧伤时，队伍里的一位医生—罗伯特，给了我很大的触动。如同象征奉献与牺牲的灯塔，如同船锚，当其它医生忙忙碌碌进进出出时，他一直以不变的热情接待川流不息的病人们，直到次日凌晨。当时，我只是个大二的学生，对于专业的医疗可以说一无所知；然而，当我亲身经历随着这一神圣职业而来的无望和希望，我感觉到自己内心的巨大变化。我意识到，当我未来成为医生时，也要像罗伯特一样，温和、优雅、为他人奉献自我；我将竭尽一切，去缓解被疾病所困的人们的痛苦。

由于在看诊中我没能提供太多的医务协作，因此我尝试以另一种形式的治疗工作来锻炼自己，也为这些被冷落和压制的病人们加油打气。宽大的T恤和裤子、绿色假发再加上脸部浓妆，我立刻从实习医生变成了小丑。随着欢乐的尖哨声跳出门，我来到孩子和大人们中间，高声歌唱，随着西班牙广播节目的小曲舞蹈，博得了人们的微笑与掌声。而当我兴高采烈地却磕磕绊绊地手舞足蹈、向他们跑去时，疲惫的小病人们被逗得咯咯直笑，大人们也捧腹不止。最后，许多不太虚弱的孩子都忍不住加入进来，与我一起表演。

这欢乐的氛围也像看诊一样深受村民欢迎，给了他们很大的慰藉，即使时间是那么的短暂。虽然我们的队伍做了许多，但最终我们也必须离开；事实显而易见，病人的处方药很快就会吃完，其他人还可能生病。要不了多久，他们又将回到没有医疗护理的悲惨生活中。于是另一支队伍将来到这座山，开另一个诊所，然而问题将永远持续下去。我将继续为这个小村子做我力所能及的事，直到某一天我能加入全球组织，教授大家如何预防疾病，比如寄生虫感染或疟疾为止。现在，我在尽力收集衣服、鞋子和玩具等一切物质，送到小镇中心去。

在这之前，我的好奇心和教养习惯让我以成为医生这一理想为乐；从委内瑞拉回来后，这个理想变得坚定起来。想到将为被忽视的弱势群体提供医疗服务，我便会充满热情、激动不已。在委内瑞拉，作为希望的载体，感受到人们的喜悦给了我极大的满足感。我将永远记得当医生为病人们诊断时，他们流露出的喜悦，正如我永远珍视我从罗伯特身上所学到的东西—作为医生，需要牺牲精神和笃定决心，而当一天的工作结束后，也将获得难以言喻的充实感；我更不会忘记，那些伴着我小丑绿假发跳舞的天真孩童，他们永远提醒着我：治疗的核心在于由乐观和欢笑带来的健康生机。