A Time for Wisdom

February 5, 2021 / By admin / No Comments

By Rosanne Mondrone, Director of Community Relations at Mary Wade

“There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens, a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.”

Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8, New International Version.

The book of Ecclesiastes teaches us about wisdom. It reminds us there is a time and purpose to everything under the heavens. Nothing could be so relevant to our success at this time. How we deal with these truths is key to our survival. The writer seemed to understand the thoughts reflected upon here will govern our lives for centuries to come and their wisdom will play a crucial part. There are circumstances that arise out of our control. If in all these months we have learned anything, it is that there is a time for everything especially trusting our instincts. In these times decisions made by healthcare workers can change the course of many lives including our own.

Families would love to embrace their loved ones and we would love to open the doors to unsupervised visitation, but making that decision is not sound judgement at this time for all of those who live and work here. We would love to stop testing our residents and staff. It is uncomfortable and costly; but that could put many at risk. Peace would make everyone happy right now instead of the stress and discomfort we all feel, especially when we can’t accommodate that phone call to a family in the timeframe we’d like or set up numerous Facetime visits when they are requested. Laughter would be a welcomed sound and to dance again would make our souls radiate. But patience and understanding speak volumes about what those of us who are working so hard on behalf the residents and their families really need.

These are challenging times. The world is tired of the isolation and the uncertainty of what’s ahead. We are tired of the masks and the constant disruption to our daily lives. We are tired of the worry we live with and the fear of the “second wave”. We are tired of worrying about our jobs and how we will feed our families. The amount of time healthcare and essential workers have lived with this extreme anxiety is daunting and it has taken its toll on our families and our loved ones. We are ready to cut loose and be free from it all.

But this is not the time to be impatient. It’s not the time to care less. You must care more. You can’t let your guard down; you must keep it high and know that lives hang in the balance of what’s right and wrong. If we are to succeed, we must be wise. We must draw on what we have learned over the last 10 months. We must go far beyond what is simply right and wrong. We must let our instincts, knowledge and experience be our guide.

Remember even foolish people know there is a right and wrong but often leave their actions up to chance. “If I succeed, great. If I don’t, oh well I have bad luck.”

In order for us to succeed, we can’t rely on luck. Our ability to succeed and move forward is grounded in wisdom; the soundness of the actions we take every day based in our experience, knowledge and good judgement. We can learn a lesson from the planet we live on.

Nature is a beautiful reminder of the wisdom of the universe; there is a time to tear down, a time to uproot, a time to be silent, a time to die, a time to plant, a time to heal, a time to love and a time to rise again under the heavens. In time and with patience the leaves always bloom again as beautiful as ever.