I recently had the pleasure of being closely involved with my dying patient and her family.  It was not unexpected and the family was very clear about their wishes.  These are powerful moments in life and something I have come to cherish.  It seems strange but I find easing someone from this life with comfort and respect to be one of the most satisfying experiences of being a doctor.  The only comparison is birth.  A funny ying and yang.  It reminded me of a concept I had in medical school.
    I was a theatre minor in college and active in community theatre in medical school.  A fact that most people find unusual (although I'm not sure why.)  I once was asked in Med School, "How can theatre and medicine have anything in common?"  After thought, I responded, "Lots!"  Theatre is the study of Life in an attempt to mirror life.  Medicine is the study of Life in an attempt to understand it.  To be honest,  clinical skills are relatively straight forward and easy.  I have found that being a good doctor is about UNDERSTANDING my patients and the life around them.  A task that has been made easier by a theatre background more often than my ability to do a physical exam.  Now to be fair, I think this is probably true for most arts.  A fact that is horribly misunderstood and unfortunately neglected by our children's education.  A reminder to me and my colleagues of the importance of a "fulfilled" life and taking the time to look past the differential diagnosis.  
This brings me to my last thought.
Many people have lots of opinions about what exactly a doctor does.  I personally think we are like Theatre Ushers.  We (doctors) Usher people into the show, help them find their place, and do everything we can to make their experience enjoyable.  We have nothing to do with what show they see!  It could be a love story, a comedy, a tragedy, or a horror.  It may be a long epic or (unfortunately) only a short film.  But one thing is constant.  We are there for them.  To support their experience.  Not to define it.  And...  when the show is over, we are their to show them the way out.
In this job as a theatre usher, we (doctors) are truly blessed.  For not only do we get to experience our own show, but we are privileged to experience the shows of thousands.  A gift we should never take for granted.