30 minutes ago, Megasin1 said:

We have watched this super human endeavour unfold over the last few weeks, like the proverbial cat that ate the cheese, it has been tinged with hope, sadness, worry and joy. It has even caused arguments and sometimes even laughter. My ex was telling me that when the Brits found the boys, one of the boys says in Thai, "are they tourists, or are they here to rescue us?" and another in true Thai style asks, "Have you told them that we are hungry?", to which the reply is, "Yes, twice"

This has been a truly international rescue, one that restores your faith in humanity, from all the Thais that gave their help willingly and freely to the massive number of divers that volunteered to assist in whatever way they could and of course they all deserve thanks and praise as the spearhead rescue experts would not have been able to complete the operation without all that support.

Every day, some new fact is uncovered that contributed to the success, like the old bill blues and two-ing the kids face masks down the motorway to get them onto a plane to Thailand after some small enough to fit the boys were located. There are many stories like this, insignificant on their own, but all adding up and contributing.

There have been misunderstandings, like when my ex asked why do they shine the torch at them, until it was explained to her, there has been guess-work, predictions, doom and gloom, elation and finally success. There has also been a large dollop of humility, something we are not accustomed to these days.

Personally, my enduring memory of this whole operation will be that when the shit hit the fan an awful lot of people turned out to clean it and that is a very reassuring thought. ?

My wife heard "where are you from?"

"England", followed in Thai by a hushed "I didn't realise we'd  gone that far!" ?

8 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

He wasn't employed and he wasn't their teacher, a volunteer football coach.

The coach had spent 8 years as a monk prior to his coaching of the team, i would say that says a lot for his upright character. 

Many anesthetics used in modern medicine have the ability to erase memories of procedures undergone  by patients or participants and hence reduce the possibility of experiencing further trauma. 

The rescue is a  fabulous result for everyone involved and at the same time  a  huge sorrow and   reminder of the fragility of life with the greatest price  and sacrifice paid by Samarn Kunan  who lost his life whilst selflessly  helping in the rescue of  the team. Hare Om.