Jurassic Park, Collaterals and Hedgehogs
“Life will find a way.” - Dr. Ian Malcolm, JURASSIC PARK
“Collateral blood vessels are small capillary- like branches of an artery that form over time in response to narrowed coronary arteries. The collaterals bypass the area of narrowing and help to insure blood flow. However, during times of increased exertion, the collaterals may not be able to supply enough oxygen- rich blood to the heart muscle. “ - WebMD
Besides reading lots of books, I enjoy watching movies. The books and movies I love, I tend to revisit frequently. I read Michael Crichton’s novels before they became movies and was fascinated by the stories he told, beginning with The Andromeda Strain. The man could certainly weave a tale.
Even though Dr. Crichton admitted that the collaboration with Steven Spielberg that resulted in the movie version of Jurassic Park only contained between 10-20 percent of his book, it is still a gloriously entertaining movie that our family adores watching.
And watching.
And watching.
It isn’t just the dinosaurs, which are spectacularly life- like, or the good casting, (which becomes GREAT in the person of Jeff Goldblum as the sly, sexy and brilliant Dr. Ian Malcolm, an authority on Chaos Theory); it is the character interaction and reaction, the plot- thickening suspense and adventure that make us believers in this fantastic story.
Jeff Goldblum gets all the really good lines. I have no problem with that, of course, as I have already revealed myself to be quite a fan. Dr. Malcolm realizes immediately, because he is brilliant, that populating a park with real dinosaurs is a very, very bad idea. I will not spoil the movie for anyone who has led a deprived life and not seen it, but “Life will find a way,” is a quote that still gives me goosebumps of the very best kind. Although Ian Malcolm is cautioning of the dangers of trying to outsmart the dinosaurs’ ability to reproduce, there is hope implicit in his warning: Life will find a way to survive, to flourish and to triumph.
A couple of years ago, after a report card of nothing but stellar check-ups, Ed’s cardiologist, Dr. Mary Beth Cishek, wanted to take a closer look at what appeared to be a narrowing of one of the arteries that was part- and- parcel of Ed’s new heart. The artery had a little bend in it and required a closer look during a stress test. Ed, always interested in a challenge, looked forward to the test, with dye highlighting his arterial flow (or lack thereof), and “acing” his exam. We learned about collaterals after this test. The human body is an amazing machine and the heart is a fascinating engine of muscle and nerves. As time had gone by, tiny vessels had formed and were aiding the artery to get the needed blood flow filled with life- giving oxygen through the heart. Even during a stress test, with Ed exerting himself as hard as he could, the blood flow was sufficient. Life found a way.
I have no illusions that the results were a foregone conclusion. I know that, once again, we received good news, but that may not always be the case. All I can do is be astonished at how the human body is”fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:4) and the intricacies and design of the human body are wonders I cannot possibly understand. I continue to be grateful to the men and women who strive daily to understand the mysteries of these corporeal frames in which we dwell, the better to cure heart disease, cancer, MS, Cystic Fibrosis and all the other maladies that plague humankind.
Our granddaughter, Eleanor, is five years old. She is intensely interested in natural science, dinosaurs, marine animals- all manner of creatures from dragons to butterflies. She was discussing a science experiment she and her mother attempted that involved growing crystals on a little plastic or ceramic hedgehog. The “quills” did not appear, and Laura Paige apologized to Eleanor saying, “I am sorry. I guess I did not follow the directions properly and the crystal quills didn’t grow.”
E. looked at her mama with those big blue eyes and simply said,
“Science never quits.”
I agree with her. Science never quits, Life will find a way, and Love never ends.
Love and Grace,
Paige
POSTSCRIPT - Jeff Goldblum revealed in an article that when he took his first meeting with Steven Spielberg, the director said there was a possibility that the character of Ian Malcolm would “just be rolled into” the character of Dr. Alan Grant, the paleontologist played by Sam Neill. Can you imagine!?!?