Louisville Medicine Volume 64, Issue 11 | Page 16

REFLECTIONS SPRING BREAK Teresita Bacani-Oropilla, MD S 14 pring was too early this year. By the first week of March, the daffodils and forsythias brought forth their brilliant yellow flowers, the tulip magnolia trees burst into pink splendor and the pear trees lining the roads cloaked themselves in shimmering white, only to be quickly ruined by the howl- ing winds, the rain and the frost. Although nature seems to be having episodic tantrums in alternating cold and warm spells, the hope is that these waves of destructive weather will pass and the seasons will resume their rhythmic flow. means. Entrepreneurs have made sure there are enough beaches, playgrounds and entertainment to meet their needs. In the meantime, people do their best to cope. Tuning their heaters, lining their doors and cracks where the cold seeps through, they must be sure, in their eagerness, not to forget about carbon monoxide poisoning and unattended open fires. The more fortunate snowbirds migrate to homes in Florida, and others find respite in long or short vacations or conventions in the south according to their The second was a young priest in his early thirties, eager to fulfill the Maryknoll Order’s aim of continuing to take care of the spiritual and material needs of the people in their foreign missions. Both teacher and priest were imbued with purpose, energy and a great resolve to do their best. This they did despite privations and living under primitive conditions, unfamiliar food and exposure to health LOUISVILLE MEDICINE Thus, several friends, having worked together more than half a century ago in the Philippines, decided to meet to recap their past. The first was a then 21-year-old peace corps volunteer. Idealistic and inspired by President Kennedy’s 1961 plea of “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country,” she went forth to share her talent as a teacher in a needier world. She learned to adjust as she lived with the local people, taught local teachers expectations and techniques, and taught students herself. She also lost her roommate in an accident while there.