Friday, July 19, 2019

Where were you that July afternoon?



River's getting dirty
The wind in getting bad
War and hate are killing off
The only earth we have
But the whole world stopped to watch it
On that July afternoon
Watched a man named Armstrong
Walk upon the moon

And I wonder if a long time ago
Somewhere in the universe
They watched a man named Adam
Walk upon the earth
“Armstrong” by Lobo



Where were you that July afternoon fifty years ago?

I was in El  Paso with my family, watching & listening as Walter Cronkite chronicled the Apollo 11 mission to put a man on Moon.

Along with 600 million people around the world, we heard Cronkite announce:

“Armstrong is on the moon! Neil Armstrong, a 38-year-old American, is standing on the surface of the moon! On this July twentieth, nineteen hundred and sixty-nine.”

I remember my family & I going into our backyard that evening, the open desert & hills behind us.  It is one those memories that never leaves you.  Gazing up at the moon, the world filled with wonder, joy & possibility. 

Never before have we needed another moment, a light, to remind us of our potential for hope, triumph & marvel.

A moment, a light like the one we experienced that afternoon fifty years ago.