REFLECTIONS
IT IS TIME
Teresita Bacani-Oropilla, MD
A
couple of nicely dressed elderly
physicians were patiently awaiting
to board a 7 a.m. flight to St. Louis.
Awake and busy since 4 a.m. to be on time
for the preflight security screening, they
were told at the last minute that their plane
had mechanical trouble and they had to be
rebooked. In dismay, they realized that if
they missed their connection, they would
miss the long-planned opening luncheon
reunion with classmates of 58 years ago. So much depended on
precise timing on this occasion, yet there were myriads of other
occasions when time stretched out as a limitless commodity that
could be frittered away with impunity.
is there such a place or condition that we would like to perpetuate
at this time?
As the modern world progresses, however, we live by the clock.
We do not have the luxury of sleeping like a Rip Van Winkle while
the world goes by and expect to awake and resume life. Rather,
tick tock, tick tock, “Don’t miss the beat or you’ll miss the boat, the
bus, the train, or the plane.”
Free of encumbrances of self consciousness, sure of their worth,
and happy with what they had become, these young “olds” confided about their crushes, remembered their fears of being failed by
once formidable professors now long gone. Reliving their struggles and successes with training, tests, and practice, their combined stories were a kaleidoscope of academia, long term practice
among the needy, brave stints with the military, and the joys and
pains of raising families in an adopted land, the USA. Interspersed
were the sadness and loss of beloved lifetime spouses and family
members both here and in the land of their birth. Most significant,
however, were the successes of their children and grandchildren,
a new American generation. These had become of prime importance for these veterans of life who had started to pass on the future to them. Now was the Time.
Would we want that this could be otherwise? If so, the alternative would be to live in parts of our world where time still blends
with the temperament of the people, where ceremonies, happy or
sad, can last hours or even days. There, people are prepared, nay,
expect to wrest enjoyment or emotional satisfaction from a milestone, an engagement, a wedding, a reunion, a promotion, or even
from the proper mourning of their dead. Time is at their command, not the other way around.
Or, we could wish that like the idyllic Scottish village in the
musical, Brigadoon, we can preserve the status quo of what we
consider ideal, only to reappear unchanged every 100 years? But
8
LOUISVILLE MEDICINE
Time is so precious, so evanescent, here now, to make use of, or
it marches on and is gone forever.
Which brings us back to the elderly couple awaiting their plane.
Rebooked south via Atlanta, instead of north via Detroit, they arrived in St. Louis on time to join 40 other octogenarian classmates
for days of reminiscing, touring, dining, and dancing. Then time
not only stood still, it regressed to more than half a century ago,
when youthful lads and maidens courted, studied, and looked to
a bright future at the College of Medicine, University of Santo Tomas, Manila, Philippines in 1956. And that future was now and the
intervening years in between.
Note: Dr. Oropilla is a retired psychiatrist.