REFLECTIONS
OF COMINGS AND GOINGS
AUTHOR Teresita Bacani-Oropilla, MD
“The falling leaves,
Drift by the window
The autumn leaves
Of red and gold”
Nat King Cole’s song has lost its oomph
this year. Exhausted by the prolonged record
heat, many leaves have turned prematurely
brown, lost their grip and have fallen lifeless
to the ground. Thus, no glowing shades of colors to crown our trees,
which now look stark. Children find no joy in jumping and burying
themselves in the dry crackle of turf beneath the trees.
Consider the parallel with Homo sapiens. The loss of colleagues,
friends and family who walked with us in the path of life left us
bereft of the nourishment of love, camaraderie and exchange of
ideas; what had nourished our souls for so long is now gone. We
miss their direction, their approval of our purpose in life. We search
for other pursuits but with only our own guidance. We needed their
loving help just as rain refreshes the greening leaves.
Change, and accepting change, however, seems to be the
inevitable story of life. An infant cry the moment he/she leaves
the cozy cocoon of the womb. Faced with bright lights and cold
air around its warm body, he has to breathe on his own to survive.
Helpless, he has to be cradled, fed, and cared for until able to do
all for himself.
By this process, the caring and letting go, he is molded by
innumerable interactions with others until he proudly takes his
place in the adult world and starts the cycle all over for the next
generation.
We sometimes forget, or take for granted, the myriad interactions
in a person’s life. Consider parents, babysitters, grandparents,
nannies, or ayahs who helped to raise a child. Think of the doctors,
teachers, coworkers and patients who were indispensable to our
success and well-being. Don’t forget the caretakers of the people
who once made the decisions of life or death for others, dealt with
riches or penury, who now themselves need physical and mental
care in their vulnerable years.
Everyone, the cared for and their caretakers, is affected by
memories and actual services given, affections exchanged and
impending loss, at the time of separation. Although painful, it has
to be gone through because, as the saying goes, without pain there
is no gain.
Fortunately, we all have springs to look forward to, when the
rains come and bring back the sap from the once parched earth,
and the new leaves and flowers bloom again.
When the young look to their future with confidence and the
old look back with satisfaction on what they have done, Louis
Armstrong, another singer, can sing excerpts from his song with joy.
“I see skies of blue
Red roses too
I see them bloom
For me and you.
I hear babies cry
I see them grow
They’ll learn much more
Than I’ll never know
And I say to myself
What A Wonderful World!”
Thus the world comes and goes!
Dr. Bacani-Oropilla is a retired psychiatrist.
NOVEMBER 2019
35