I am so proud to be a citizen of Earth today. I blog, of course, about the touchdown of the Curiosity Rover on Mars yesterday.
Mars. That big red planet out there, of myth and legend? You know the one.
I know the NASA and JPL did a lot of WOOT WOOT AMERICA! yesterday, and deservedly so, but as Dr. Tyson warns us (the gentleman in the above photo: if you don't know who he is, get thee to youtube and get you some learnin') America the Beautiful isn't alone out there. Yes, we're the first in many ways space and Mars, but we are not alone. It is not our Hadron Collider on the Franco-Swiss border that found the God particle. That's not our space station orbiting the Earth.
As a matter of fact, when one of the scientists spoke last night, he made a point of saying "I'm not going to mention the countries that aided in this endeavor" (I paraphrase, excuse me) and I know it wasn't said in a mean way, but why not give a shout-out to our friends in science? To our brothers and sisters on Earth that look beyond its fragile blue and white atmosphere. This is an achievement for all of us: ally, friend, casual acquaintance, and yes, even for our enemies.
What does any of this have to do with a blog that is supposed to focus on a writer's journey? Because there was this little girl who sat in a darkened movie theatre and watched the words "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away" flash across the screen, and who went home and wanted to go far, far away herself. Because she was also riveted to the tales of men that had gone where no one had dared to go before...and those tales took place in .... space... the Final Frontier! And if I couldn't get away for real, maybe I'd get away in my head. My first attempt at a novel was basically about what I hoped the Jedi did. I called it "The Chronicles of the Jai-Alai." Science fact and it's dreams... science fiction... are very close to my heart.
I am proud a California company was so involved in this incredible achievement. I am psyched to live in an America where this is available to watch online. But more than all that, I want to celebrate the citizens of Earth who have taken this incredible step from the blue planet to the red one. And as @CobraMisfit said, let's name the next rover Red.
It is VERY exciting! I wish my son were here (he's with his dad right now), because I certainly would have made a science lesson of the event!
ReplyDeleteSeriously, I'm so thrilled. I had a few very definite aspirations growing up: writer, actress and astronaut. Since I'm not pretty enough to be an actress, and not good enough with math and science to be an astronaut, and writer was my first choice anyway, I stuck with that.
But I still recall one of my childhood dreams: to be the first person to set foot on Pluto. ;)
I think you haz a pretty. And do you know - I had something in the post about how I felt like everyone always strongly suggested to me, as a young, impressionable person, that I was too dumpy and unattractive to really be ANYTHING, but I took that out. I didn't want it to be about me and my sad childhood. :) There are so many people, uglier and fatter than me, that are very successful.
ReplyDeleteSadly I lost interest in space travel when I found out there was no artificial gravity.... doh! :)