Letter Nr. 1
… … and of course I accept no money for treating your son.
I did this out of love.
Not so that you will love me, but because I know
that
the greater happiness is to give and not to take.
You are not obliged to me.
I owe you thanks for giving me the opportunity
to enjoy the pleasure of offering you something.
Anyway, I myself am a debtor too.
My medical skills I owe to my teachers and to
the state which enabled me to study for free.
I would be unworthy of the title of doctor and I
should
feel ashamed if I used this ability to enrich myself by
exploiting the misfortunes of others.
I would furthermore be unworthy of the name of
man,
if you really want to know.
It has been a long time since we humans
escaped from the behaviour of hyenas.
And if you need me again
(hopefully this should never happen),
I will always stand by you.
With lots of love your brother
C. B.