When Life goes Downward (Lessons from a Coal Miner who Dreamed of becoming an Astronaut)

I wanted to be an astronaut. I ended up being a coal miner.

I dreamed of soaring into space with John Glenn or leaping around the moon’s surface with Neil Armstrong. “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

Instead, I went deep into the earth. There were no stunning views of our blue planet, just high piles of dirt in a dark dungeon.

Outer space was far away. My coal mining day was spent deeper underground than the Empire State Building is tall.

I was fully qualified to be an astronaut. I had all the Right Stuff except for my poor vision, even poorer vertigo, the poorest grades in physics, and my inability to fly a plane.

Apparently, I had all the Right Stuff to be a coal miner. I had a body, and I was expendable.

I had coal mining in my family history before I ever felt my face covered in black soot. My mom was a Coal Miner’s Daughter, and I was the grandson of a coal mine foreman from Kentucky and later Tahona, Oklahoma.

I wanted to be an athlete and then an astronaut. I ended up as a coal miner.

One summer in college, I worked as a coal miner in a shaft mine. We took an elevator down, and then the tunnels extended horizontally underground.

This was the one dark place where literally I could not see my hand in front of my face without the assistance of the headlamp. My dreams had plummeted from the infinite heights of outer space to the hidden depths of total darkness.

The summer benefit was vanity. After cleaning my blackened face, I was left with dark eyebrows and eyelashes that could make Elvis Presley jealous. Girls who spent hours with mascara and fake eyelashes envied my look. It felt as if a Hollywood stylist had prepared me for a photo shoot.

The long-term benefit was qualifying for Black Lung support. Apparently, breathing coal dust is unhealthy for the lungs.

I remember this experience around three topics. Darkness. Danger. Dirt.

Coal Mine Lesson #1 DARKNESS:
I arrived for my engineering apprenticeship, which was mostly about studying, not working hard. The chief engineer said the timber crew needed an extra person, and they offered three dollars more an hour. I needed the money, so it was an easy choice.

An elevator brought us to the bottom of the shaft, which resembled a lit-up parking lot. There were large machines, bright floodlights, and a lot of noise. The horizontal tunnels were very dark.

The crew took a lunch break at noon. When a co-worker asked about my lunch, I said it was in my locker. He laughed and told me we do not go back above ground for lunch; we eat against the shaft wall.

Man does not live by bread alone, but by the word of God.

The only light in the horizontal tunnel we traveled through was the small light on our coal miner’s hardhat.

After lunch, my headlamp started to dim. The foreman told me to return to the main center for a new light and to follow the conveyor belt to the main shaft.

As I walked, my lamp gradually dimmed and then went out. It was completely dark, and I could not see my hand. There was nothing around me, just the sound of the conveyor belt.

Darkness can be frightening and cause confusion about direction.

What should I do? Should I ask for help? I was too proud and scared to shout. I thought there was time, so I continued walking close to the sound on my left.

When I reached the bright lights of the center complex, I noticed my foreman had come with me. This was a trust test and a lesson on keeping the headlamp fully charged.

I learned both.

Spiritual Lesson about Darkness. Life has both light and dark moments. We experience sunny days, but sometimes our despair feels so heavy that we do not feel there is any hope of better days.

God uses darkness to teach us to trust Him and the importance of keeping our own light bright for life’s journey.

God’s Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Never leave home without its guidance. Trust it and preach to yourself in the darkness. Read it often to remind yourself God is always with you and for you.

Every dark day serves a good purpose. Darkness makes faith, hope, and love shine brighter, helping those whose light is fading into fear and confusion.

Coal Mining Lesson #2 DANGER:

My time in coal mining was filled with danger, not extra money for summer fun. When my retired grandfather, who used to be a coal miner, learned I joined the timber crew, he felt fear instead of pride. He had seen too much. The year before he became foreman, an explosion killed his foreman and nineteen other miners.

Coal mining is dangerous. A roof collapse can cause heavy rocks to fall. Dust and methane gas can ignite and cause explosions. Coal dust harms the respiratory system.

The timber crew faced increased danger. As the big machines carved out new tunnel shafts in the rock, the timber crew followed closely to support the ceiling.

The roof was quickly supported by hydraulic jacks. The crew then replaced the jacks with large oak timbers. We measured and cut the timbers with a two-man saw. After lifting and adjusting them into place, our foreman slowly lowered the hydraulic jack until the ceiling’s weight rested fully on the timbers.

Some experiences helped me understand my grandfather’s fears.

I stood by my experienced foreman as he prepared to move the heavy rock ceiling from the hydraulic jack to the new wooden supports. In complete silence, he listened as he slowly released the jack, little by little.

He would stop, listen, and rely on a sense learned only through experience. This timber insertion was unique. He warned me, “Son, be ready to run when I say. Just let go of the jack and run for your life.”

The next breath was, “Run!”

I stood up as a large rock dropped two inches onto my helmet. I felt a small bump. If I had still been on my knees, I might never have played sports again or seen daylight.

As we ran to a safe spot, the rock ceiling fell. Large rocks crashed around us as dust swirled in the air.

Spiritual Lesson for Danger: Stay close to the Lord. Listen to His voice. Follow His warnings. Be aware of His cautions. Avoid dangers to your soul and spiritual health.

There is never a good time to stop and ignore the warnings in the #1 Textbook.

Blessed is the one who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners,

nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

but his delight is in the law of the Lord,

and on his law he meditates day and night.

Coal Mining Lesson #3 DIRT:

Coal dust poses a significant risk of fire explosions. As new mine shafts are developed, large quantities of coal are placed on the conveyor belt that leads to the main shaft for extraction.

One week, the safety engineer threatened to close the mine due to excessive dust under the conveyor belt. Two of us were assigned to shovel the dust onto the belt—three hundred yards of dirt, four feet on each side. We had to shovel until we reached rock bottom.

After eight hours and a lunch break, we only uncovered twenty feet of dirt. That was less than seven yards of a three-hundred yard project.

Why so little progress? The depth of the dirt.

I began the morning on my knees level with the conveyer belt. I moved shovel loads of coal dust, dropping it down on the belt. At the end of the day, I was standing below eye-level of the conveyor belt, lifting shovel loads above my head.

A lot of dirt built up over the years, dust particle by dust particle.

I woke up the next morning, calling for my dad. My hands felt stiff, curled up as if holding a shovel. I thought I was paralyzed. Despite my feelings, I went back to work at the coal mine.

The next day, the mine supervisor assigned our ten-man crew to the project. We dug another thirty yards. A lot of dirt had built up over time. Eventually, we were told to just remove two feet of dirt from the top.

Many of us manage our spiritual lives with just a quick, surface-level approach. Superficial spirituality.

Spiritual Life Lesson about DIRT:

Even a small amount of daily dirt will eventually lead to a hardened heart. Simply trying to be better never solves the problem. We need Christ’s forgiveness each day to have a pure heart for a fresh start.

Clean me up, Lord, and I will be whiter than snow.

Do you need help today? Learn from a summertime coal miner and a wanna-be astronaut.

In times of Darkness, Danger, or Dirt, turn to the Lord.

Oh soul, are you weary and troubled? No light in the darkness you see?
There’s light for a look at the Savior; and life more abundant and free!

Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face

And the things of this world will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.

EYES UP! LOVE YOU!