Yes, I said I “met” him
March 13, 2010I met this gorilla. And, yes, I said, I “met” him. Babec was a silver back gorilla who lived at the Birmingham Zoo. With the help of a pacemaker company and the cooperation of the zoo, medical doctors and veterinarians, he was the first gorilla to have a pacemaker implanted in order to save his life.
Babec Just After Pacemaker Implantation
The picture of him here on the gurney is one they ran in the paper right around the time of his death. The picture was actually taken, I think, at the point that the pacemaker was implanted. When I got news of his death, I cried. He was majestic, and intelligent, and incredibly protective.
I ran across this article as I was going through some papers and cleaning out some magazines. It made me think about him again, how he was such a force of personality. It made me think about the vast intelligence there behind his eyes and his protective and possessive nature. It made me think about the number of people who loved him and fought for his life through unprecedented means.
Its that kind of love and devotion to something that creates a synergy through which breakthroughs are made. Where the unthought of presents itself in an undeniable way. It’s through that kind of collaboration that new ways of thinking and doing emerge. Would that THAT were our way of life rather than the exception. Just think how much could be accomplished if it were.
- Catherine
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Other animals have a lot to teach us about our humanity.