Dr. Daraban and her daughter  Fiona came to the farm on a sweltering Sunday to see the animals and give Fiona a chance to talk to a real artist. Fiona is eleven and is planning to work as an animal conservationist as soon as she is old.

She loved meeting the donkeys, and they took to her, especially when they saw the bag of carrots she brought. She and her mother and Maria brushed the donkeys for a while.

There was a heat alert and many warnings that people like me should stay outside. I told Dr. Daraban when she arrived that it was a good idea to have a cardiologist sitting on our lawn chairs. I felt quite safe.

Then we sat outside and talked. Then we came inside to be comfortable and cool and talked some more. I was initially a bit intimidated by the idea of Dr. Daraban coming to the farm; I couldn’t quite get out of my head that this person. She almost certainly saved my life when a blocked valve threatened my heart.

Other doctors might have given up; the surgery was dangerous.

But she is so natural, warm, and down-to-earth that soon enough, it was just a friend visiting. Fiona loved talking animals with Maria and Dr. Daraban, and I talked a bit about the issues she faces as the new head of Cardiology at Saratoga Hospital.

She has a beautiful story to tell about getting to Romania and learning medicine at different hospitals all over the country – New York City, California, Montana, and now, and perhaps finally, Saratoga Springs.

Fiona and Dr. Daraban are close and love riding around New York State, looking at animals and animal exhibits. I guess we are one.

Dr. Daraban’s is an inspiring immigrant story, and I hope she writes a book about her life one day. It’s no small thing for a foreigner to get to be an American doctor; it takes years and years of hard work and a lot of moving around.

Her job is important and challenging; she seems more than ready for it. I know from personal experience that she has no trouble making tough decisions, and I learned a lot about how much health care has changed since the pandemic.

It was a sweet visit. We invited both of them to come back any time they wished and gave them some books about animals. It was a nice transition from patient to friend, and Fiona had a hundred questions for Maria, who answered every one of them. Dr. Daraban has no airs of any kind; she’s all real.

It was a gift to get to spend time with her out of an examination room. She is worth the wait. So is her daughter Fiona, who is charming and curious.

The donkeys can be standoffish with strangers, they both took to Fiona right away, and she took to them.

She loved brushing them. Fiona showed no unease around the donkeys at all. She knew just how to talk to, handle, touch, and love them.