REFLECTIONS : The Keys , Please !
by TERESITA BACANI-OROPILLA , MD
The old doctor , the Lion King of his world , was reminded by his son , “ The keys , please .” He was a retired ophthalmologist and had taught many younger colleagues . He still suffered from PTSD related to caring for severely wounded victims in the Iraq War . He has been to many medical missions , restoring eyesight to the blind in Thailand and the Philippines . He still prided himself in hunting deer in nearby forested areas .
Now he is confronted with a dilemma . His son , noting that it had become a chore for him to drive a car due to impaired breathing and needing O2 for any strenuous activity , had asked him to stop driving .
He tried to bargain , saying he was to drive only to his barber , not to go to interstate roads , just drive to be able to see a dear friend who lives in a nearby subdivisions , etc ., to no avail .
In this modern civilized motorized country of the great U . S ., erstwhile productive people lose their independence , their privacy , their dignity in losing their ability to drive themselves .
Have a hankering for a favorite sandwich or ice cream ? Need a manicure ? Miss an old buddy you grew up with ? Put a gift check in the bank ? Or maybe need a few loose dollars to give to a grandchild ?
One has to ponder , “ Is it necessary enough to call or bother someone to do it for you ? That someone could be working , resting or living far away , or doing something more important . Could you do without , or aren ’ t you a little selfish in demanding it anyway ?”
Sadly these considerations diminish the little things that give pleasure or purpose to waning lives .
Each and every one of us is living or has lived to the best of our abilities . They may not have been as varied nor spectacular as others but have impacted others in positive ways . After all is said and done , life is indeed waning . Do we now expect what poets of yore described as sailing peacefully into the sunset ?
Not quite . “ Dem ” days are gone . Instead , a reminder :
Ye , hearty people , make use of the great privilege to be free where you may roam , that you may not rue the inevitable , but accept it with grace when you are told , “ The keys , please .”
Dr . Bacani-Oropilla is a retired pediatrician and psychiatrist .
August 2023 27