Life is to be Lived

On a crisp autumn morning, against the backdrop of an azure sky, the white wakes of flying jet planes crisscrossed cach other, as though inviting onlookers to play heavenly tic-tac toe. Because of constant coverage on TV of contamination of work places with anthrax, the bombing of the cities in Afghanistan, and the plunging stock market, we had forgotten to note that the world is still turning on its axis. The skies are still blue, the trees are displaying their glorious colors as the season changes. It comes almost as a great relief to realize that there are constants in this world despite humanity's erring ways.

We have only to look at our young children to remind us that this is so. To the young and innocent, the world is a place to experiment, to test their mettle, to learn about relationships. They begin to make daily decisions (trivia to us, yet momentous to them) such as whether to select Menu A or Menu B for lunch at the school cafeteria. One is hot, the other cold. They are pleased when they are able to read and decipher instructions on how to build a toy airplane. Their world then takes on a new dimension of independence and exploration into othcr fields just by being literate. They revel in their new skills, kick a ball, bat it, shoot it thru a basket, be included in a team. They fret when they are rejected, beam when complimented on their drawings, paintings, ability to play a musical instrument, and other creative endeavors. They look forward to the next day, which they believe will bring new adventures. Would that we had thcir enthusiasm and confidence for these are the adults of the future!
UntiJ they are old enough to take over the responsibilities from us, the adults of the here and now, we hope to nurture and shelter them, give them the opportunities to mature and come of age themselves. We could take a hint from them and see if we can still conjure the old zest for life and continue to have faith in the future. If we hesitate because of the present state of affairs, we have only yo be reminded by history that since the dawn of civilization, wars have been fought, lost, and won, with peace being restored eventually. It seems that as a species, we do not leam our lessons well, and always revert to old behaviors when in a bind.

Let us hope that this war won't last too long to inflict much pain and suffering on ourselves and others. In the meantime, let's do the best we can each day of our lives- toil, love, have faith and thank God for the countless blessings thal we somctimes forget we have.

-Teresita Bacani-Oropilla, MD

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