Mujiyem, 73, was almost buried alive under a roof which collapsed during the earthquake. Five days later, she could finally have her injured arm treated. When we were leaving, she smiled with tears in her eyes and waved the same arm to us.

DURING THE EARTHQUAKE in Yogyakarta, a large brick had fallen and badly damaged Mujiyem's arm. When we first came across her, she had not eaten for a day, her brow was deeply furrowed, and fear was plainly etched across her face. But when we pushed her through to the waiting area of the operating room, she suddenly began babbling excitedly in nonstop Javanese, the only language she could speak. Was it possible that the goodwill and friendliness that we were demonstrating was helping to ease her anxiety?

A doctor who worked for the Indonesian chapter of the Tzu Chi International Medical Association (TIMA) helped interpret for us. We learned that Mujiyem had come very close to being buried alive. When the powerful quakes had first struck Yogyakarta, Mujiyem had been flung to the ground, and as the roof collapsed above her she found her entire body covered in earth. Only her head remained above the surface. After her rescue, Mujiyem was delighted that Tzu Chi had arrived to provide free clinics, because she had waited for days to be treated.

I joined several TIMA members from Malaysia and Singapore on a jeep ride into a country district called Bauran. The countryside of Indonesia is not unlike that of Taiwan--there are the same familiar sights of paddy fields and banana trees, with cows, goats, and chickens leisurely strolling around. But as a result of the earthquake, nearly 90 percent of the houses had collapsed. Ruins of shattered walls, distorted wooden framework, and broken red tiles extended as far as the eye could see.

The local people had set up simple, makeshift sheds amidst the rubble and debris. In one of the sheds that we visited, we were shocked to see more than eighty people crammed into a space of only 50 square meters (534 sq ft). This situation greatly aroused our concern as overcrowding in these conditions could easily lead to outbreaks of communicable diseases.

Outfitted with stethoscopes and some simple medicine, we set to visiting the villagers who were most in need of medical care. Some of the people we came across were an elderly woman lying amidst the rubble, a dehydrated child who was running a high fever, a baby less than half a year old, and a woman who was nine months pregnant.

As I was examining a woman with cellulitis in her left leg, a helicopter began to descend. As it hovered low above the ground, an enormous cloud of dust was stirred up. Instinctively, I turned my back to the helicopter to shield the patient's wound from the dust. I watched as some young men abandoned the food that they were already cooking on stacks of firewood and rushed to pick up the food items dropped by the helicopter. Some even began tearing open the packages then and there and gulping down the chocolate contained within.

On the day of our departure from Yogyakarta, we conducted a final round of check-ups on all of the patients we had operated on. We were glad to find that they were all recovering well. Through the help of interpreters, we reminded them to not forget to exercise their limbs.

Since we had to leave for the airport in the afternoon, we had to maximize our available time in order to perform as many operations as possible. We therefore decided to split up into two separate teams. As the first team of doctors began operating on the first patient, anesthetic was administered to the following patient. Then the second team of medical workers sawed the second patient's cast off to expose the affected area, and then the patient was sent onto the operating room. After the first team of doctors finished operating on the first patient, they immediately went on to operate on the second patient. The second team of medical workers then took over from the first team and cleaned, sutured, and dressed the first patient's wound. It was a very effective system.

All the doctors who worked in the operating room were experienced physicians from Taiwan. Together they concerted their efforts in order to provide the best possible treatment for the survivors. If one was too busy, another would automatically step in to help. This cooperative spirit was one of the main reasons that the free clinics could run so smoothly.

When our work was done, we prepared to leave for the airport. Walking through the hallways, we saw one smiling face after another on the beds lining the corridor. The smiles of the patients were to be our greatest reward for making the trip to Yogyakarta.

From a bed in the corner, Mujiyem smiled with tears in her eyes and waved her right arm to us. Her smile, which was so full of gratitude, will forever remain deeply ingrained in my mind.