I’ve been asked to put up other posts from my previous blog where I acknowledge the passing of a notable person. I’ve found a couple of people most will know, plus one that you might not have known so well.
I was saddened to hear about the death of Jim Cronin last night, he died on 17 March in New York at only 55. I had never met him, but I admired him and his wife Alison immensely. They rescued 100s of apes, chimps and monkeys from devastating cruelty all over the world, including some of the circuses in England in a high-profile media fest. They created Monkey World, somewhere I have been meaning to go to ever since I started watching the TV series.
Although American, they had lived in Dorset for over 20 years, creating the rescue centre and park from nothing. They also ran a successful breeding programme alongside the rehabilitation of injured, damaged and elderly primates. Passionate about their cause, they never preached, but worked hard to change people’s perceptions on how our closest animal relatives should be treated. You will very rarely see chimps drugged to their eyeballs for tourist photos now.
Once again, we have lost someone who made an impact on the world, made it a better place, by doing rather than talking. Life is too short to waste, you need to grab it, hold onto it and live it to the maximum. Carpe Diem ‘pluck the day’ if you take the translation literally. The full quote is: ‘pluck the day, for in the future you can believe the minimum’
Go on, get out there and pluck it. Stop reading this, I’m going to close now anyway, enjoy the sun on your face, the fresh air in your lungs and extract the fullness of life.
Rest in peace Jim, my thoughts are with Alison, your family, friends and colleagues, thank you for doing, being.
Any posts with the prefix, Revisited, are cross-posted from a now hidden personal blog.