Do you know what happened to the little naked girl running for her life in the iconic Pulitzer prize winning photo* from the Vietnam War? Dr. Peter Saunders does. He had the privilege of meeting her recently, and recounts her story:
8 June 1972, a plane bombed the village of Trang Bang, near Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) in South Vietnam after the South Vietnamese pilot mistook a group of civilians leaving the temple for enemy troops.
The bombs contained napalm, a highly flammable fuel, which killed and badly burned the people on the ground.
The iconic black-and-white image taken of children fleeing the scene won the Pulitzer Prize and was chosen as the World Press Photo of the Year in 1972.
It communicated the horrors of the Vietnam War in a way words never could, helping to end one of the most divisive wars in American history and later becoming a symbol of the cruelty of all wars for children and civilian victims.
In the centre of the photo was a nine year old girl, who ran naked down the highway after stripping off her burning clothes.
Kim Phuc Phan Thi was with her family at the pagoda attending a religious celebration when the plane struck and lost several relatives in the attack. The children running with her were her own brothers and sisters. …
Kim remained hospitalized for 14 months, and underwent 17 surgical procedures, until she recovered from the burns.
Grateful for the care she had received she later decided to study medicine but struggled to come to terms with her deep physical and psychological scars.
‘My heart was exactly like a black coffee cup,’ she said. ‘I wished I died in that attack with my cousin. I wish I died at that time so I won’t suffer like that anymore … it was so hard for me to carry all that burden with that hatred, with that anger and bitterness.’
But it was as a second year medical student in Saigon that she discovered a New Testament in the university library, committed her life to following Jesus Christ, and realised that God had a plan for her life.
Kim later defected and now lives in Canada. Her biography, THE GIRL IN THE PICTURE, written by Denise Chong was published in 1999.
*Click the link to source above to view the original photo.
"Forgiveness made me free from hatred," Kim told Saunders. "I still have many scars on my body and severe pain most days but my heart is cleansed. Napalm is very powerful, but faith, forgiveness, and love are much more powerful."
If that little girl in the picture cold find the power to overcome the scars left by napalm, then what prevents you from forgiving those who have harmed you?
"Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses" (Proverbs 10:12).
Tim Keller writes:
"In a real world of relationships, it is impossible to love people with a problem or a need without in some sense sharing or even changing places with them. All real life-changing love involves some form of this kind of exchange . . . Imagine you come into contact with a man who is innocent, but who is being hunted down by secret agents or by the government or by some other powerful group. He reaches out to you for help. If you don't help him, he will probably die, but if you ally with him, you—who were perfectly safe and secure—will be in mortal danger. This is the stuff that movie plots are made of. Again, it's him or you. He will experience increased safety and security through your involvement, but only because you are willing to enter into his insecurity and vulnerability."
Keller adds,
“All life-changing love toward people with serious needs is a substitutional sacrifice. If you become personally involved with them, in some way, their weaknesses flow toward you as your strengths flow toward them ….How can God be a God of love if he does not become personally involved in suffering the same violence, oppression, grief, weakness, and pain that we experience? The answer to that question is twofold: First, God can't. Second, only one major religion even claims that God does.”
"But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5).
Yes, it's true. In fact, they can actually hold their breath up to 45 minutes at a time.
Believe it or not, yes! Sloths can hold their breath for up to 40 minutes, while dolphins typically last around 10 to 15 minutes before surfacing for air. Sloths have an incredibly slow metabolism, which allows them to reduce their heart rate and conserve oxygen when submerged. Meanwhile, dolphins, as mammals, need to breathe frequently despite their aquatic lifestyle.
The reason these land-dwelling, super submersibles are so adept at breath holding is due to some unique physiological characteristics:
Their secret lies in their low metabolic rate and unique respiratory control:
Slow Metabolism: Sloths burn energy at an incredibly slow rate, which means their bodies require less oxygen than most mammals. This allows them to hold their breath much longer without experiencing distress.
Bradycardia (Reduced Heart Rate): When submerged, sloths can slow their heart rate by up to one-third, significantly reducing their oxygen demand. This trick is common in diving animals like seals but is unusual for a land-dwelling creature.
Efficient Oxygen Storage: Sloths have a high concentration of myoglobin in their muscles, which helps store oxygen for prolonged periods. This trait is typically seen in deep-diving marine mammals like whales and dolphins.
Minimal Movement: Their famously slow and deliberate movements mean they don’t burn oxygen rapidly, further extending their ability to function without fresh air.
All of these adaptations make sloths surprisingly well-equipped for survival—even underwater!
When it comes to their biology and physiology, sloths are some pretty amazing creatures. Yet these very characteristics — like their unusually slow metabolism and sluggish movements — have given them a pretty bad rap in Scripture.
"Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord" (Romans 12:11, ESV).
"The desire of the sluggard kills him, for his hands refuse to labor. All day long he craves and craves, but the righteous gives and does not hold back" (Proverbs 21:25-26, ESV).
"But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed?'" (Matthew 25:26, ESV).
"So that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises" (Hebrews 6:12, ESV).
And a plethora of other references ...
The message is clear: The sloth may be perfectly acclimated for water survival, but he is utterly unequipped for spiritual survival. The ways of the sloth are not to be envied.