From The Distance Of The Moon, Earth

The Urge To Explore Has Propelled Evolution Since The First Water Creatures Reconnoitered The Land. Like All Living Systems, Cultures Cannot Remain Static; They Evolve Or Decline. They Explore Or Expire. . . . Beyond All Rationales, Space Flight Is A Spiritual Quest In The Broadest Sense, One Promising A Revitalization Of Humanity And A Rebirth Of Hope No Less Profound Than The Great Opening Out Of Mind And Spirit At The Dawn Of Our Modern Age.

From The Distance Of The Moon, Earth Was Four Times The Size Of A Full Moon Seen From Earth. It Was A Brilliant Jewel In The Black Velvet Sky.

I Was The First Navy, Marine Or Air Force Person Who Had Been An Astronaut To Return Back To The Air Force. I Had Certain Expectations About What Would Be A Reasonable And Desirable Position To Be Assigned To After My Years Of Service.

There's A Tremendously Satisfying Freedom Associated With Weightlessness. It's Challenging In The Absence Of Traction Or Leverage, And It Requires Thoughtful Readjustment. I Found The Experience Of Weightlessness To Be One Of The Most Fun And Enjoyable, Challenging And Rewarding, Experiences Of Spaceflight. Returning To Earth Brings With It A Great Sense Of Heaviness, And A Need For Careful Movement. In Some Ways It's Not Too Different From Returning From A Rocking Ocean Ship.

Somebody Would Think I Was Trying To Get Favored Treatment Because My Ancestors Had The Name Moon. And That's A Joke.