What does the future hold? God only knows

By Anthony Hailey
Special to Arkansas Catholic

“Nothing is absolute. Everything changes, everything moves, everything revolves, everything flies and goes away.” -- Frida Kahlo

We might not have seen or heard this exact saying by Kahlo, but we should know its meaning. We do not know what God has in store for us. Everything changes. In fact, some of these things or events happen in a matter of milliseconds. Some of these quick occurrences can change our whole way of life, and we might never have seen it coming.

The only possible way that I am able to help someone understand this deep truth is through some of my own stories.

Back in March the coronavirus really made its name known, and we all have a story we can tell regarding how this affected us. A simple one for me is related to my school. When I heard the news that Catholic High was going to temporarily shut down, I did not think much of it. I thought that this shutdown would be a, well, temporary one, and that we were going to end up coming back to school a couple weeks later. Not once did it cross my mind that we would be in a worldwide pandemic months later. This virus caught me off guard. I’m sure most people can say the same. 

Another story I have that shows how some things can happen in an instant is one that is more personal to me. Before I entered high school, I was living the life of any typical middle school student and made some lasting friendships during this time. One of my best friends was a kid named Jake. Jake was overall a nice guy, and I could tell he cared about other people who weren’t necessarily his friends. In about seventh grade, Jake told me the news that he was moving across the country. I was shocked to say the least. Just like that, he was basically gone. Everyone who has experienced this knows that it’s tough to be in this situation, especially because we usually can’t see it coming. Everything flies and goes away.

I’ve always wondered why Frida Kahlo said those famous words. Kahlo had moments where her entire life was upended. She had an aspiration to become a doctor, and it looked promising that she would achieve that dream of hers. When she was severely injured in a bus accident, she had to give up on that specific goal. Did she ever expect something like this to happen? This is the case for all of us. Just one thing can be so much more significant than it might seem.

Again, we all have a story we can tell about how there are things in life we simply can’t see coming. Some things we have no control over. However, what we can control is our faith and our works. We must truly cherish the time we spend with our friends and family. It is vital that we strive for our full potential. 

Uncertainty might be a bad thing, but in this case, it’s beneficial for all of us. If we acknowledge that we do not know what the future will be like, then we are encouraged to act in a way that is Christ-like every day. We don’t know what life will be like tomorrow. If we apply this knowledge (or lack of) to our own lives, we can benefit our own communities like we’ve never seen before. I strongly urge others to do so.

Anthony Hailey is a senior at Catholic High School in Little Rock. He attends Christ the King Church in Little Rock.

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