History Was Made, and I Was There

Well, actually I was sitting in my living room, watching history being made right there on my TV set.

I'm talking about the historic first moon landing (and subsequent moon walk), which took place almost exactly 40 years ago as I type these words - around 10:30 p.m., July 20, 1969.

I was a skinny 13-year-old kid, eyes glued to the TV and absolutely fascinated by the space program. Mom and Dad were there, too, but I'm not sure about my three brothers - my younger brother Eric was probably asleep, and older brothers Mike and Bill may have been elsewhere - but I was focused on what was happening on the screen.

I had followed the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs over the years, and probably still didn't grasp the incredible dangers those three astronauts faced to land on the moon.

As Neil Armstrong exited the Lunar Module to climb down to the surface of the moon, he activated a camera set to allow the world to see the historic moment - but the picture was upside down! I remember Walter Cronkite (rest his soul) saying, "All of America is standing on its head right now." After a few moments, technicians flipped the image right-side up, and we saw that first step.

According to a news story, most Americans today weren't even born when that happened, so they may have a tough time understanding what a moment of national pride it was for the American space program to have accomplished what many thought to be impossible.

I was convinced - and am still convinced to this day - that there's almost nothing the people in this country can't achieve, if they have the courage and the determination to try.

Here's a taste of that historic day, courtesy of our pals at NASA: