“still alive…
but i’m barely breathing…
i just prayed
to a god that i don’t believe in…”
– The Script band
This is a health post.
Breaking spectacle, er, news: trapped for 69 days: The Chile miners rescue
From BBC News: (blog admin’s annotation based on BBC live feed and background materials): The first miner is now being pulled out
from 622 meters underground. He is placed inside the “Fenix”, a metal capsule equipped with oxygen tanks and fiber optic network for communication. it will take 15 minutes for him to ascend through the ride in the shaft.
He has been instructed to control his breathing, maintain uniform heart rate, be calm, not hyperventilate…
Waiting…waiting…
Authorities chose the strongest of the miners, physically, mentally, and emotionally, to be hauled up, so he would be lucid enough to describe the conditions. The “videographer” of the miners, Florencio Avalos, who has kept order underground, was chosen…
His family and the Chilean president with hundreds of others,
are waiting for him to surface now…
….xxx
And he surfaces!…
Applause…tears…hugs….He is smiling and hugging everyone,
but he doesn’t speak…
He’s now lying on a stretcher, and now he speaks…
(being without sun, trapped in small spaces, limited air, food,
and water supply for 69 days, this survival story will provide tons of materials for scientists, medical doctors, social scientists.)…
[When he surfaced, he didn’t gasp for air, didn’t leap out with joy, didn’t gush and cry, didn’t raise his hands in hurray or hallelujah — he just stepped out of the capsule (it took awhile to unlock the opening) then, smiled broadly… then hugged everyone…]
(My small theory is, aside from his physical, mental, and emotional strength, his videography and videoing activities also helped him and the miners keep their sanity, their morale, and aided in maintaining order while trapped for 69 days.)
(being mentally active by documenting your ordeal helps.)
(Applause for Florencio Avalos, the videographer who could control his breathing and heart rate!)
(Heaven forbid you find yourself in such confined spaces, without sun, little air and food…)
(….Breathe…Conserve strength, control movements…Remember where you came from, who you are….Document… write… record, film… Stay alive)
…xxx
the second miner has now been placed inside the capsule. He was the narrator of the videos produced by the miners, Mario Sepulveda, the second strongest of the miners, according to the authorities. As he is being secured inside the Fenix, rescuers give him instructions, (in Spanish: “tranquillo, tranquillo”), relax, be calm.
(Breathe…slow down your heart rate…)
(So…And so…the “filmmaker” (the videographer of the miners), and the “journalist” (the narrator of the miners), or – because they were recording daily– you could say, “the bloggers” among the miners — and those who were calmest and had the greatest control of their breathing – were the strongest; the lucid and mentally active everyday. ) And that’s my blog post for the day.
(the second one has come out! In
contrast, he jumped with joy and rallied the crowd! That’s your narrator…)
