院長又維穩. 呵欠....... === Dear Students, Dear Alumni, Dear Colleagues, The cliché “Life is a marathon, not a sprint” has been quoted so often because it is so true. I have come to appreciate these wise words by thinking in terms of the long arc of history. They remind us that, however apparently great and invincible during any particular point in a defined time-space, each of us is but a small part of history. The grand narrative of “History” is made up of many, many individual “his-story”’s. Indeed Martin Luther King once consoled his flock by preaching that “the arc of the moral universe is long”, but that importantly “it bends toward justice”. At once, “Life is a relay of sprints”. This latter quote moves us to give of our best during the time the relay baton is in our hand. Note well the operative term: relay. Life is indeed a relay race. As any relay runner knows, the secret to winning or losing a race lies in how well the baton is received, then passed on. Whatever your belief or conviction, whether you have been a runner, cheerleader, volunteer or onlooker, it is time to move on. To the runner, you have given your all. The race will be lost, or you may even get disqualified, if you hang on to the relay baton too long and forget to let go. To the cheerleader, your heartfelt cries of encouragement have kept the runner in top form during her leg of the race. But more cheering will only distract her from remembering when and how to pass on the baton, thus jeopardising the race. To the volunteer, you have kept the race safe and smooth. But when the stadium crowds are stirred and shaken by mobs, surely your first duty is call for a halt to the race, and perhaps ask for a rerun some other time. To the onlooker, willingly or unwillingly packed into the same stadium, you naturally have your differences. You all have your own favourites. Every stadium is packed with spectators supporting different teams. But your collective wellbeing is wholly dependent on one another. You outnumber the runners, cheerleaders and volunteers in the arena. You ultimately decide how the race will end, whether in a stampede or an orderly exit. Of course there are also the organisers and the referees. Anyone who has watched a game of sports must have thought at one point or another how unfair the referee was, even booed and cursed at a “wrong” ruling. But time and again, perhaps grudgingly, we understand and respect why there are referees because no game or race can go on without them. As for the organisers, including the stadium owners and managers as well as leaders of the different participating teams, may good sense and wisdom prevail in their decisions. I trust they feel the burden of the arc of history. The Faculty hotline (9316 6267) continues to operate providing assistance. Stay safe. Keep calm. Act rational. Move on. Gabriel Leung Dean *All letters, including this one, can be retrieved at med.hku.hk/v1/letters-from-the-dean/
Posted on: Mon, 06 Oct 2014 04:52:02 +0000
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