Time is a great teacher,
The one that kills all its pupils.
The lessons often start with
“Everything is beautiful,”
Then they promise
“After rain come rainbows,”
They continue with
“All pains are growing pains,”
And at some point, they end with
“The world is far too tangled for lessons at all.”
Time is a great teacher,
Yet its lessons are far from ideal.
Between lessons “too much, too early,”
And lessons “too little, too late,”
I want my money back.
Life is a great teacher,
The one that buries all its pupils.
The lessons first disguised as conclusions –
Rules of the game written only by survivors;
Then they pose as questions –
Why not choose the path to an easy continuation?
They grow into threats –
Daylight can become a nightmare by the will of the powerful;
And finally reveal the ultimate challenge –
What if everything means little from the get-go?
Time is a great teacher,
Yet its lessons are far from ideal.
Between lessons “too broad, too philosophical,”
And lessons “too narrow, too cynical,”
I want my money back.
Data availability statement
Data are available upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
The author wishes to express her gratitude to the editors and reviewers for their constructive input and insightful feedback.
Author contributions
Z.S. conceived the work, reviewed the literature, drafted, and edited the manuscript.
Funding
The Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (4025002306); Jiangsu Provincial Institute of Health Emergency, Research Centre for Medical and Health Emergency Rescue, Xuzhou Medical University Research Projects (JSWSYJ-20240102).
Competing interests
None.
Ethical approval
Not applicable.
Consent for publication
Not applicable.
Open access
