REFLECTIONS : Autumn !
by TERESITA BACANI-OROPILLA , MD
The falling leaves drift by the window The autumn leaves of red and gold I see your lips , the summer kisses The sun-burned hands I used to hold
Since you went away the days grow long And soon I ’ ll hear old winter ’ s song But I miss you most of all my darling When autumn leaves start to fall
-Jacques Prévert and Joseph Kosma
Songs have a subtle way of awakening memories , happy and sad . Glorious hills and distant mountains crowned with colors as one drives along country highways , grandchildren jumping on piles of now rusty orange , brown leaves . Apple picking in commercial orchards , carving pumpkins with funny eyes and wide smiles , eyeing the Halloween candy on sale . Yet in one ’ s memory , faces of loved ones long gone enter the picture . With hope , we lock them in our hearts for comfort and without regret .
But , back to the present , the here and now . How to comfort an older widow who lost her husband to COVID-19 ? How to deal with the death of a child caught in the crossfire of an angry vindictive person ? What to do with a promising teenager caught in the trap of deathly drugs ? Can we control destruction by a crowd in the name of supposed justice ?
What to do ? Are we responsible ? Can we help ? Should we ? Or are we a people distant from the plight of others : live and let live ? What is actually possible to do ?
History shows that erstwhile powerful kingdoms and civilizations flourished but were lost forever , i . e ., the Pharaohs of Egypt , the lost city of the Incas . Yet out of the remnants , others have replaced them .
Pestilence has decimated populations big and small , yet presently we worry about overpopulation .
Indeed , like our forebears , we can help ourselves and others if we so choose . Thus , can we survive the joys and sorrows of the autumns of our lives .
Dr . Bacani-Oropilla is a retired pediatrician and psychiatrist .
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