San Fu Tian
San Fu Tian, often called the “Dog Days of Summer”, is the hottest and most humid period of the year in the traditional Chinese calendar. Rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), it represents the peak of Yang (male) energy in both nature and the human body. San Fu Tian lasts between 30 to 40 days depending on the sun and moon configurations. For 2026, the period lasts from 15 July to 23 August during which San Fu Tian Moxibustion Therapy is recommended for curing Winter diseases in Summer. It involves plastering parts of the body with herbal mixtures for about an hour on three to four specific days during the period. Our TCM Medical Doctor friend Csaryne Wan had been calling us to her clinic for the dressings in the past few years and this year was no exception. We had the first treatment on 15 July and the second, on 5 August. We are due for the final dressing on 14 August.
In between, we went through the usual routines and vagaries of life, including the appointment with the Orthopaedics General at PMH on 31 July at noon. It was the first follow-up from the 2 January 2026 appointment when Su accompanied me for the visit. This time, it rained rather hard; and I believe the Red rainstorm warning was issued before noon. The attending doctor was a young lady. She noted that I had come by myself and without assistance, and that apparently, I was not in pain. She invited me to look at the x-ray which indicated some signs of aging in the right knee. She also advised me that the blood tests had come up with nothing negative. The consultation lasted for about five minutes after which she told me to book for the next appointment, which would be due in one year, when I would probably meet another doctor. I had a Lodge meeting in the evening followed by dinner and after which Bosco took me back to Mei Foo, accompanied by Keith who came up and joined me for a nightcap. It was a long day. The next day, I went for breakfast at 9 am at KCC with Francis and Sabina. I began to feel the strain and went straight back to Mei Foo afterwards.
Alas, I could have caught the bug at PMH during my short stay – which was what she suggested – and I developed flu symptoms. When I couldn’t shake them off the following day, I decided to cancel most of the lunch and dinner appointments of the week. I persevered with the second San Fu Tian dressing, having been advised that I could if I didn’t have a temperature. We went even further and had lunch with Tso Tso and Joan afterwards at the restaurant we discovered at Kerry Centre in North Point. We had a great meal and a lot of catching up.
Meanwhile, the renovation of the exterior walls at Mei Foo had reached a stage that they were about to replace the drainage pipes outside our flat next week. Su decided to use the window to plan a holiday up north. She decided on Yangshuo Town within Yangshuo County, with popular scenic spots which had made Guilin famous. We will spend a few days in some good hotel for good food and a good rest, and I very much look forward to that.
Today is LiQui立秋 which marks the end of summer and the beginning of autumn in East Asian cultures. We had had almost two months of nonstop rain and the first typhoon recently. It cleared up this week, but the weather appeared to be unsettling. Both Su and I had not been at our best forms, and we both tried to take more rest ahead of the Yangshuo trip. These days, we seem to be having more news on the passage of local celebrities. Inevitably, each item of news brought back memories through association with the individuals or with the era in which key events had taken place. Once again, the urge to put together a sequel had grown stronger but it dampened as quickly as thoughts of who would want to read them cropped up accompanied by the imagery of the undistributed stock of the 2021 published memoir. But life will go on and must go on; and I don’t think I should allow such irrelevant little possibilities clutter the brain.
We had a good lunch with Bonnie Leung, her husband Stanley and three children. It was a lovely long lunch. Su retrieved photos taken in 2014 when Megan was barely three years old. Stanley had now been in YVR for seven years initially taking care of the children and Bonnie, four. They seemed to be doing very well. This is what I say people should always do, looking ahead all the time and thinking positively.
