Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Hooray! The Miners Are Being Rescued!

I was trying to think of a photo to symbolize the joy as the Chilean miners are being rescued. I decided to use this photo of a monkey jumping for joy.

As I write these words, 5 miners have been rescued and 28 more are yet to come up. We shall hope that all miners and rescuers are safe.

This is a white-faced Capuchin monkey. On a wildlife boat cruise on in Palo Verde National Park, a group of moneys started to play on the roof of our boat and a boat that pulled up along side us. The monkeys enjoyed the roof of the boats, I presume, because they are flat, smooth, and the fiberglass canopy had a little bit of give to it. The monkeys also seemed to enjoy making a thumping sound as they landed from their jumps.

For monkeys living in the jungle, a flat surface like the roof of the boat is a novelty. In the jungle they do not have anything like the roof of the boat on which to jump or play.

If the monkeys could know that the Chilean miners are being rescued, I am sure that they would jump up and down for joy.

Costa Rica does not have mines. The early Spanish explorers named Costa Rica, which means the "rich coast," because they saw natives wearing gold. But the Spanish soon discovered that the gold came from elsewhere, not Costa Rica, so Spain largely ignored Costa Rica during the colonial period. The indigenous population was almost wiped out by the introduction of European diseases and by the enslavement of Costa Ricans to take them to work in the mines of Peru.

My grandfather, who I never met as he died of tuberculosis in about 1930, had worked as a coal miner in Ohio. Let us share in the joy of the rescue of the Chilean miners and reflect on the sacrifices of miners everywhere, and the miners who have lost their lives in their dangerous work.

Please check out the photos of the island of Hvar, Croatia on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site this week.

7 comments:

Sharon said...

This one made me smile! I enlarged it and I could see the motion in his jumping activity.

Julie ScottsdaleDailyPhoto.com said...

great sentiment and photo. it is an amazing day for humankind as the miners rescue is a miracle

Lois said...

It is a happy day!

nathalie in avignon said...

Great photo and story.
The miners rescue has made worldwide news, hasn't it? Amazing how the news are going global...

I hope the last one makes it to safety soon.

Judy said...

Oh happy day! It brings tears to my eyes seeing them come up.

Cute photo too.

I was interested in the story of your grandfather. My grandmother, who I never met, died of tuberculosis in 1925. Of course, she was not a miner, nor was my grandfather and I have no idea how she contracted it. So I don't know what this has to do with your story, but... there you go.

glenda said...

What a happy little monkey, and very appropriate for the rescue taking place in Chile. Our thoughts are with the miners until they have all been rescued and reunited with their loved ones.

Kate said...

Great photo for celebration. Jumping for joy must have been done for all the family members when miners and rescuers were pulled safely to the surface. Wasn't that whole thing remarkable?

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...