Is nothing sacred?
==================

* Ronald Ruskin

Dan Ezekiel points out that his surname comes from “a long and distinguished lineage.” The same cannot be said for the Ezekiel in my recent story,1 whose origins remain unknown. 

As Dr. Ezekiel no doubt knows, his name can be traced to the 6th-century BC Hebrew prophet who wrote that “The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he carried me out by his spirit and put me down in a plain full of bones” (Ezekiel 37:1).

I can assure Dr. Ezekiel that Ezekiel the organgutan skeleton was indeed a great character. He watched over young and anxious medical students struggling with Death, Anatomy, and *Grant's Atlas*. His bones showed us the spaces between life and death; his primate image floating before our eyes showed us our past and our future.

**Ronald Ruskin** Staff Psychiatrist Mount Sinai Hospital Toronto, Ont.

## Reference

1.  1. Ruskin R. The anatomy museum. CMAJ 2003; 168 (2):203-4.
    
    [FREE Full Text](http://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiRlVMTCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6NDoiY21haiI7czo1OiJyZXNpZCI7czo5OiIxNjgvMi8yMDMiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyMjoiL2NtYWovMTY4LzgvOTYyLjMuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9)