DNL’s Speech during the National Convention of the
Philippine Academy of Family Physicians, Inc. on September 10, 2005.
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| ``Hope For The Family`` |
No doubt, this is a family affair. Speaking to the members of the Philippine
Academy of Family Physicians not just as City Mayor of Tagbilaran but also as
the husband of a physician, I cannot help but feel home. As they say, it’s all
in the family.
Your 16th mid-year national convention comes just when things seem to be
getting worse. From the flood in the United States to the stampede in Iraq,
one gets the feeling that tragedy seems to be working overtime.
Here at home, Congress may seem to have killed the impeachment proceedings
against Pres. Arroyo for the moment but few believe that the tempest is over.
Indeed, there seems to be little reason to be optimistic these days. Quite the
opposite, we never seem to run out of reasons to despair. With reversals in
the economic and political front, the line forming at the US embassy gets
longer by the day.
Each time I get to think about the Philippine diaspora, the exodus of some of
the best professionals for foreign shores, I cannot resist the feeling of
sadness. How ironic that we are producing among the best physicians, the best
nurses, the best caregivers and the best health workers and yet they are
giving their best elsewhere.
There are reasons to be happy, among them, the continuing commitment of family
physicians like you to the cause of family health. In the midst of storm
clouds, this is a silver lining that is comforting enough.
The reality however is that we are not yet out of the woods. We are in fact
facing a growing threat that hits right at home. One of the tragedies of this
generation is the steady disintegration of families. Studies show that in the
United States, 50% or virtually half of marriages are failing.
The danger is higher for professionals who are being driven by their career
instead of the other way around. Take the life of one of the world’s most
renowned physicians, Dr. Christiaan Barnard, the South African surgeon who
performed the first human heart transplant operation. In his book “One Life”,
Dr. Barnard shared a very tragic loss.
“It was a bright April morning when I drove out of Minneapolis. It seemed a
century since I had first arrived here, a time longer than all the years
before it.
In New York I put the car in a boat and caught a plane for Cape Town. A
northwest wind was blowing when we came over the sea with the waves close
below. My wife was there with the children.
I had not written much in the last two months, yet I was unprepared for her
greeting. “Why did you come back?” There was no longer a smile in her eyes. Oh
god, I thought, I’ve made the most terrible mistake of my life. “Don’t look so
surprised,” she said. “We gave you up. We decided you were never coming back.”
I responded, “It was only a little delay. I wrote you about it.” “No, you
wrote once you were not coming home.”
“We were building valves, aortic valves,” he answered. “No, you were building
a family. That is, until you dumped it into my lap,” she said bitterly. “We
have ceased to exist for you.” I wanted to say I’d come home because I love my
children and I believed I loved her. I wanted to because I felt it, but what
could I say now that would not sound meaningless.”
This is the tragedy of our time. While we believe we are doing everything for
our families, oftentimes we fail to notice that there is no family to go home
to in the end. And so while I am not in a position to pass judgment on Dr.
Barnard, I cannot fail to miss his pain. As a father myself, I can only
shudder at the thought of losing a home not because of any outside force but
simply by default.
Tonight, let me invite you to take a moment to reflect on the brevity of life.
We pass this way but once so we might as well enjoy the scenery. Take time not
only to enjoy the sight of flowers in full bloom but the glorious sight of our
children laughing. Take time not only to smell the scent of flowers after the
rain but of boys and girls after they have taken a bath. And yes, let us not
only take time to read a book or see a movie but also for a moment of romance
with the spouse to keep the flame burning.
God has blessed you with careers in one of the noblest professions known to
man. In fact, you have chosen to specialize in a field that is closest to the
heart, the family.
While we are all called upon to serve, even to sacrifice in the course of
answering that call for service, let us bear in mind that the God provided for
families to be happy.
At the end of the day, we must concede that no pursuit is more important than
the cultivation of a godly family. May God keep our families together as we
press on towards a better world. Thank you. |
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