A Pakistani man carries a crate of mangos across a flooded area in Khan Garh, Muzzafargarh district, Punjab province, Pakistan. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

There are four Canadian doctors spending the week in Pakistan.  Without hesitation, they volunteered to go, to help however they can.  The floodwaters might be slowly receeding across the country, but scores of families are homeless, or are returning to homes devestated by the disaster.  The risk of disease is everywhere, medical supplies are limited, and first aid and acute care is in heavy demand.

Wasel Kabir is a 35 year-old medical doctor from Hamilton, Ontario.  He was last in Pakistan 17 years ago.  He's there now, thanks to a trip organized by Islamic Relief Canada.

We knew Dr. Kabir would be taking on a journey that would likely affect him deeply.  So Day 6 asked him if he wouldn't mind sharing his thoughts with us.

He has, and over the next week, Internet connection permitting, Wasel will be blogging for us from the field.

We'll be speaking with Wasel Kabir on our Saturday program (our first show!), but in the meantime, here's what he's been experiencing so far.  Wasel will be blogging exclusively for Day 6.  So subscribe to the blog.  Tweet your followers.  Spread the word.

We'll update the blog daily, as quickly as we can.

DR. WASIL KABIR'S PAKISTAN BLOG
DAY 1 (Thu, Sept 2, 2010)

(Dr. Kabir's route to Pakistan included a stopover in Washington D.C.)

As I sit here, en route to Washington, DC, I can't help but reflect on what brought me here.

Like the unseen feet of a duck, paddling hard underwater, the hard work of the Islamic Relief Organization gives us ducks a smooth glide of complete serenity above water. My team and I feel comfortable and secure with our travel arrangements.

Internally, however, I am disturbed. I can't help feel the irony and the resulting guilty feeling, being comfortable en route to a destination where the population perhaps only experiences serenity in their dreams.

The physicians that accompany me - 2 of which I just met - already feel like brothers. Our personalities, common interests and goals force us to be compatible. They are selfless, intelligent fellow Muslims. I look forward to working with them on the field, as we try to give comfort to those in need.

There is an ominous feeling, a subdued anxiety in trying to prepare myself for the nature of the environment and the need of the people in Pakistan. I know that reading or watching something does not do justice to reality.

I don't know what to expect. All I know is we want to help, and I can't wait to get there to help, relate, and be humbled.

(some editing by Day 6 producers)

DONATE: CBC Pakistan Relief