It was Sunday afternoon and I was down at the creek with my brothers goofing off. That’s what you did when it was July, you were eleven years old, and it was 1969. When I think about it today, I’m embarrassed that I had momentarily forgotten what was happening 250,000 miles away, and instead opted to throw stones off the train trestle and into the Saucon Creek flowing below me.
We got home before dinner and my dad told us, “They landed! They did it!”
(Did it? Did what?) Then, holy shit! (No, I didn’t say “holy shit” in front of Dad … but I thought it.)
It was July 20, 1969. Neil and Buzz had guided their lunar module to the surface of the moon.
“Contact light.”
“Engine stop.”
“Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed.”
Tranquility Base. Eagle. Columbia. Neil. Buzz. Names that were only days … hours … old. Today they are hardwired into my DNA.
I guess the landing wasn’t on my radar. To me, it was the FIRST STEP that was the big deal. They had a camera rigged up for that. Live television. I didn’t consider the danger involved in the landing. Didn’t know that Armstrong would have to take manual control … hover and fly over a boulder field … and land with less than thirty seconds of fuel remaining in the tank … as mission control turned blue.
Armstrong didn’t even break a sweat.
A few hours later we all sat on the sofa and the floor and we rolled the TV stand closer to us than my parents would normally allow. We watched in astonishment. Men on the moon bounced blurry on our tiny television. They collected rocks. They raised a flag. They came in peace.
How lucky was I to watch Neil and Buzz explore Tranquility Base? Back in 1969, when I was eleven years old, and anything was possible.
Takes me back! And I agree, it made you feel like anything was possible!
Mom and I just read that together. She said it was an exciting day, back then! Thanks for all the reminders of a huge day in our history!!