to the moon and back

I went on a run last night and thought about Gus. These photos from 1961 are some of my favorites. He ran to stay fit, along Florida beaches and through Texas suburbs. I ran hard and fast until my heart pounded and my lungs burned and then I ran some more. That’s when I feel most alive—gasping to catch my breath, strong, satisfied.

I think about how many of those breaths Gus took in his all-too-short life, free and deep, arms and legs shaking, sweaty, aware of his entire body, that big grin on his face, exhausted, energized, fully alive. That’s the way he approached everything. He lived every moment fully and he lived well.

Gus and Ed and Roger died together 56 years ago on January 27, 1967—a Friday evening, just like tonight. I’ve thought about those seconds and the pain of losing them endlessly. But I’ll always remember them brilliantly, inspiringly alive. Whether it’s the air in my lungs or the sun and wind on my face, I know they once felt this, too. They were here.

NASA Remembers Fallen Heroes

“In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth…”

December 13, 1972 – After completing their third and final moonwalk of the Apollo 17 mission, astronauts Gene Cernan and Jack Schmitt paused to take photos of each other inside the lunar module before they left the lunar surface. Note the Moon dirt on the suits and the beard growth. The time they took for these photos were some of the final moments that humans would spend on the Moon.