The Heroic Courage of a Chilean Man

On October 12, 2010 at about 11:35 p.m. Chilean time, Manuel Gonzalez, a rescue expert with the Chilean state copper company Codelco, climbed into a rescue capsule and was lowered into the unknown in an effort to rescue 33 trapped miners that have been underground for 69 days in a San Jose copper mine.

His trip to the bottom inside the missile like metal capsule, named the Phoenix 2, took him on a twisting journey along a 2,041foot shaft that had been drilled by other rescuers. The shaft is only 28" in diameter and during the 16 to 20 minute ride up and down the shaft it is estimated that the capsule will completely spin around 10 to 12 revolutions.

What kind of man volunteers for that sort of a rescue mission?

We all have heroes in life. Someone that has impacted us, and been so strongly influential that a permanent mark has been left in our hearts and minds forever. Some of us go to great lengths to study these heroes in an effort to learn from their humanity in order to instill those wonderful character traits deeply within ourselves so that when the time arrives there is prevalence.

I'm sure Manuel Gonzalez is a man with a selfless heart, a spirit of patriotism, a level of focus and concentration second to none, who has a sense of dedication to the completion of a mission, a man with true grit and guts, a giant level of courage, and a sense of faith in his beliefs! And, let's not even begin to speak of the man's capacity to handle stress and pressure while remaining poised! The whole world is watching these events unfold via television, and other forms of media. Talk about being under a microscope! I don't know the man personally, but I would be humbled and proud to merely be in his presence....

History has been made by Gonzalez. Nobody has ever done what he did. Never before has there been a rescue attempt of its kind with the use of a capsule like this. When Manuel Gonzalez stepped into that capsule - he was the first. When he stepped out of the capsule into the roughly 500 square foot mine where he was graciously greeted by the stranded miners - he was the first. He is the Neil Armstrong of Chile!

Can you imagine what was going through Manuel Gonzalez's mind? Or, how he felt physically as the door of the capsule was finally secured with him inside? As Manuel Gonzalez climbed into the capsule President Sebastian Pinera of Chile told Gonzalez, "Bring us back the miners."

There's been 33 miners trapped in that shaft. Manuel Gonzalez is doing just that. He's bringing back the miners one at a time. As each miner reaches the top Manuel Gonzalez (and every other person that has taken part in this rescue effort) is a success.

As I watched the rescue efforts last night on television I was overwhelmed. I was anxious. I was proud. I was filled strength and hope. I was reminded that there some sincere goodness in this world. I witnessed a true humanitarian man display everything he was made of bravely so that others may survive.

In a world and society as complex as ours is today we all need a hero.... Manuel Gonzalez, today you are mine!