The daring cave rescue in Thailand in July 2018 was breathtaking. For a few moments the world stood still.
Skilled divers, medical personnel, and others united, coordinated their efforts and prevailed to save the lives of a group of 12 children and their soccer coach.
It was a time when thoughts and prayers were a welcome sentiment, as opposed to the cliché often uttered by government officials in the aftermath of mass shootings.
At the same time, one of the more disturbing and divisive stories in recent memory—the forcible separation of thousands of migrant children from their parents after crossing the southern border into the United States—persisted through the summer months of 2018.
Many of the separated children were confined to chain-link pens that they were not permitted to leave. Some referred to them as cages.
The juxtaposition of migrant children trapped in cages and children trapped in caves symbolizes a troubling paradox: Some children count and some don’t, a reality well known to social workers that work with vulnerable populations.
Thailand is a well-known destination for forced labor and sex trafficking of children. Yet the world is not riveted to the plight of these children, whose daily peril is not as well-exposed as the kids in caves.
The kids in caves made for great reality TV. It evoked Survivor, the reality show where a group of contestants are stranded in an isolated location and a lone survivor takes home a cash prize. Cave Rescue was more compelling must-see TV, with life and death at stake.
When the kids in the cave were losing oxygen, tanks of air were delivered to them. One man, a Thai Navy SEAL Saman Gunan, gave his life for the boys to breathe easier. These young people also had the benefit of a strong group, composed of peers and a surrogate parent to lean on for emotional support and mutual aid. There were volunteers from around the world pitching in and well-wishers everywhere.
But what of the kids in cages who were experiencing inconsolable grief and a prolonged stress response that is likely to derail their healthy development for many years to come? Who was there to rescue them? What group were they a part of that offered comfort?
What they were missing could not be found in a metal canister. What they longed for was companionship, human touch, and a sense of hope.
The daring rescue in Thailand was a blessing for its exhilarating outcome and for what it made us feel about ourselves, if only for a moment. We all cared together.
If only there was some way to sustain that feeling and good will toward all of God’s children.