Those of you who've seen my recent status updates on facebook know that I've been following the Chilean miner story with great interest. I just read online that the last miner has been rescued, and I couldn't be happier for the miners and for their families.
Having just finished Lord of the Flies with my 9th graders, I have spent the last week or so discussing the novel and encouraging kids to put themselves in Ralph and Jack's shoes and to consider what they think would happen to them if they were stranded on an island completely removed from the outside world. So of course I couldn't help but notice the similarities between that hypothetical situation and the real life situation the miners have had to deal with. And like millions, I've found myself wondering if I could ever survive for 69 days underground with a group of colleagues, completely isolated from the world. It's not a question anyone can answer, and it's certainly a question I hope never to have to answer.
Yes, the miners have known for the past 50 or so days that help was on the way. They've been in touch with the outside world and have consistently received food and supplies through the special chutes drilled into the rock. In fact, Chile's rescue efforts have been so expertly handled that I think we in this country could learn a thing or two from Chilean officials about handling disasters, but I digress. In any case, I would guess that despite the promise of rescue, the miners still felt fear and frustration and despair, but there was always hope keeping them going. As for those first 17 days before they knew they'd be found, before they knew people were looking for them, well, I can't imagine what they must have felt. The fact that they maintained their faith and sanity says a lot about their character.
On the news the last few days, I've heard little snarky snippets about their private lives and their bad habits, and the fact is, I don't care, and it annoys me that the media would think that any of those things matter in the grand scheme of things. Anyone who can survive 69 days in 90-degree heat in the dark depths of the earth without ever truly knowing rescue would come and without going all "lord of the flies" on his companions is a hero. And I'm glad each of those 33 miners is getting a hero's welcome.
Well said, Leah.
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