From the Space Needle to the Moon


I remember Dad telling me to listen quietly as he turned the volume up on President Kennedy’s speech. Kennedy was challenging scientists and astronauts to set their sights on a moon landing. 

 The whole moon exploration set off a wave of inspirational thinking. I was four when the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair featured the Space Needle—and it’s out-of-this-world design. I still have my Space Needle souvenir. From fashions to building designs to kid’s toys—it all took on a futuristic look.

I was a bit older as I listened to President Nixon give the Apollo 11 astronauts a hearty send-off as they blasted towards their lunar destination. I watched our grainy black and white screen as Neil Armstrong took his first step on the moon. Yes, I’m that old to remember all of this.





 In school, we were introduced to basic rocket science, and watched NASA films explaining the details of what space travel involved. The whole idea of going to the moon inspired awesome inventions—like Velcro—and my personal favorite: Space Food Sticks.

I was enthralled with the TV commercials for Space Food Sticks and talked my parents into buying them because here in a sealed package contained chocolate-flavored nutrition—fit for a NASA astronaut. No longer would I need a soggy peanut butter and jelly sandwich in my school lunch. I could eat Space Food Sticks.

I couldn’t talk Mom into TANG—that sugar-filled orange flavored drink you mixed with water. But Grandma bought it for me when I visited her.




We’re celebrating 50 years since that momentous time in our nation’s history. Maybe it’s time for another challenge to be met with American ingenuity and resources. 

We proved we were a capable nation back then. Let us share our determination again—something seemingly unattainable may become what this generation will point back to as the new frontier they conquered.

Popular posts from this blog

Dreaming the Dream

Image
Dreaming big dreams about the future is easy for kids. The only thing standing in the way is time.  Kid’s dreams are not about skills, or opportunities, or even practicality. Those things come much later.  My grandson hopes to be professional soccer player when he grows up. This week, a small piece of his dream came true when his Boys and Girls Club was invited to participate in pre-game activities with the Seattle Sounders Football Club.  He got to suit up in a real jersey and walk on the field with a real pro player. Imagine a young soccer player looking up to who he hopes to be one day. If you haven’t taken the time to talk to a child about their future dreams—you should.  They believe. As we get older we sometimes forget that dreams fuel our hopes—and that's something we all need. So, do you still dream? Or have you left those childhood thoughts behind?  S pending time with children will  inspire you to believe agai
Read more

Sexy Selfies: Posting for attention

Image
We’ve all seen the “selfie” pix on Facebook—those self-taken images in varying forms of dress (or undress). Usually they’re female poses taken in public restrooms, dressing rooms, bedrooms, and lots of what used to be private space. Thanks to selfies and social media, it’s open season on privacy—and modesty. Do you have a social media “friend” who has become a serial selfie? Most often selfies are young girls sharing their sexiness with the world. Serial selfies post hundreds of pictures, so it’s hard to ignore the display. The question is why do they do it. While I don’t approve of the sexy display of serial selfies, insecurity is at the root. Selfies collect “likes” to boost morale. The attention received is like a balm to their broken spirits. But the dark side of exhibitionism is feeling used—not unlike the girl searching for love and giving away her body in hopes of finding love. Selfies seek approval. They're locked in a perpetual cycle of posting pi
Read more

Wild or Tame? Which One Are You?

Image
Finally! Research that explains why I act the way I do. Columbia University’s Motivational Science Center studied people’s activities and what brought them the most happiness. Even more telling were how those activities changed as they aged. Twenty-somethings tend to equate happiness with high-energy activities. Words like excited and ecstatic are usually attached to spontaneous things—even risky things—and living life full throttle.  Researchers labeled this Promotion Motivation —the urge to take chances, including career moves that may not work out. Happiness comes from happenings—the more happenings, the more happiness. By age forty, adults associate happiness with things running smoothly at work and home. It’s also about feeling secure in relationships. Keeping healthy matters more too. This behavior is called Prevention Motivation —and people are more concerned with preserving and maintaining the things they value. It appears that time ofte
Read more