There have been many historic moments that have left me in awe and others that also shocked me to the core!
The year was 1967; I was in my teens, and we heard the news on the radio. The first heart transplant was successfully performed in Cape Town by a South African surgeon, Dr. Christiaan Barnard. The donor was the victim of a car crash, a young woman who was declared brain dead. Her family gave consent for her heart to be donated, and the transplant was a success. I remember the debates about whether this was ethical and what the spiritual implications would be, some quite heated.
Fast-forward to today, and I wonder just how many people's lives have been saved by this groundbreaking surgery.
I know of a young man, a friend's son, who was given a new lease on life a couple of years ago, after a tense and lengthy five-year wait for a suitable heart. When the call came, the family was overjoyed, but also mindful of the grief of the donor's family. The transplant went very well, and he is back to doing the things an active and adventurous young man wants to do, something that would never have been possible if it weren't for that first transplant by a young doctor who 'dared to do it'!
Veering off the topic of moments in history that I witnessed, I would encourage you to consider becoming an organ donor, no matter how old you are. You could save a couple of lives and better the lives of many more.
I heard a fascinating story this week after meeting my new neighbour's wife. She rides around in a motorized scooter. I was touched by her story; she told me of how she 'died' after being thrown out of her car in a horrific car crash many years ago. She was taken to the hospital, and because she was an organ donor, they kept her body going. She startled everyone when she started breathing on her own, and said she would not have been given a second chance at life if she weren't an organ donor! She spent two years in the hospital, where she for sure would have been the recipient of human tissue, and is making the most of life today, despite the loss of mobility!
Photo by Ashim DโSilva on Unsplash Another momentous moment in my lifetime was the historic release from prison of Nelson Mandela in 1990, followed by the first free and fair elections in 1994, where he became South Africa's first black President. The lives of many South Africans were changed in a big way in the years to follow. When I was a child, we were taught skewed history in school by the apartheid regime, believing this great man was a danger to society, a terrorist! How awful to indoctrinate young minds like this. For sure, not the first and last time in the history of the world! Quoting part of a speech the late, great Madiba made:
During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.
On 11 September 2001, I remember being in the office after just about everyone had left for home; just two of us were still at work when the music on the radio stopped, with breaking news of the attack on the Twin Towers. We looked at each other in disbelief. The war against Islamic extremists was intensified after that, changing the world in a big way.
I've spoken of three moments in history that I witnessed, in response to The Silverbloggers Chronicles - Prompt #18 - A Moment In History
What's A Moment in History I Witnessed (And How I Felt)? What moment in history have you experienced?
Hive Powerup
I know many of our Hivers still power up on the first day of every month for Hive Power Up Day, an initiative by the awesome-sauce @hivebuzz, who explains: Why we participate in the Hive PUD:
The first reason is to have fun and get a badge! And here are some other great reasons to power-up your HIVE: * Strengthen your influence on the blockchain with stronger votes on content, proposals and witnesses. * Earn more curation rewards. The more Hive Power you have, the more you can potentially earn back * Earn "interest" by holding Hive Power. You will also earn HIVE passively at about 3% per year of what you currently have powered up so the more HIVE you have, the more you can earn from just holding! Finally, several amazing members are offering prizes that include delegations, Hive giveaways, and other cool stuff to the Hive PUD participants.
For the past couple of months, I've been trying to increase my Hive Power by at least 1K per month, and did the same this month by powering up 430 Hive, with the balance of HP earned from blogging. This month I hit the 33K mark, a slow but steady growth while in HODL'ing mode.
It is quite unreal to think that we will be having our last power-up day of the year in just a month's time!
My little boat almost tumbled over this year, but thankfully survived the storms of 2025.
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