REFLECTIONS : Que Sera , Sera
We are in the new year ! 2023 ! Having just survived a tumultuous 2022 , can we be justified in greeting each other with “ Happy New Year ?”
To make a short woeful list of what we had gone through : the COVID-19 pandemic , political turmoil in our midst , wars , threat of annihilation by nuclear means , pitiful migrations of people fleeing from their own kind , starvation in some parts of our parched world , etc . Can we conjure more tragedies ?
On the other hand , history tells us of similar epochs of hate , dissensions among neighboring tribes and civilizations , famine and plague . They had less knowledge , no technology , none of the sophisticated communications now available . They struggled to find answers to their problems .
We are the now generations – we have survived , to sift the grain from the chaff . We surpassed and added to their knowledge , explored the earth and beyond , and answered some of their questions .
We hope we continue on this path . We have to learn , however , to
by TERESITA BACANI-OROPILLA , MD
have the wisdom , the will and the gumption to help , rather than destroy our fellow men in the same pursuit of happiness and progress .
An old song by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans ( 1955 ) tells of an innocent child asking his mother :
“ What shall I be ? Will I be handsome ? Will I be rich ?” To which she replies : “ Que sera , sera Whatever will be , will be The future ’ s not ours to see Que sera , sera What will be , will be !”
It would seem that sentient humanity , endowed with brains and hearts ( that is us !) will continue to flourish if we use our gifts well !
Dear friends ! Happy New Year ! And many more !
Dr . Bacani-Oropilla is a retired pediatrician and psychiatrist . January 2023 25