REFLECTIONS
REFLECTIONS: IS THE SKY FALLING?
C
AUTHOR Teresita Bacani-Oropilla, MD
hicken Little, a character of nursery
story fame, insisted that the sky was
falling. For after all, something had
fallen on his head and knocked him
down. He created such panic that
when he convinced his barnyard
friends Ducky Lucky, Goosey Loos-
ey and Turkey Lurkey, they all decided that
they had to warn their king.
The wily Foxy Loxy watched them carefully, seeing a great op-
portunity. He joined the fearful group and lured them to his forest
lair. Eventually, he ate them all.
Ancient fairytales are not for the faint of heart.
There comes a time in the affairs of men when the winds blow
harder, the clouds get ever darker, the seas rise, and the storms kill.
There are times when negotiations are successful and times when
they fail. Changes of government and policies proceed apace, with
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LOUISVILLE MEDICINE
contested elections. Hostilities erupt.
Should we then, like Chicken Little, panic and assume our sky is
falling? Should we forget that behind those frightening clouds the
sun is indeed still shining? Do we remember that despite vicious
wars and atrocities against each other, truces can happen and some
semblance of peace return?
Do we realize we are survivors who try to make our earthly
abode worthwhile? Do we still have love and happiness in our own
little corners of the world?
Although we have to be wary of wily foxes who watch from a
distance for a chance to devour us, we must not mistake acorns
dislodged by the winds for the whole sky. That sky still frames our
world.
Happy and safe days, I wish you all.
Dr. Bacani-Oropilla is a retired psychiatrist.