Earlier this month, I found myself captivated by the Artemis II NASA mission. While I live a rather tame life myself, I find myself drawn to instances where humans push the boundaries of comfort and find themselves in high-stakes situations.
Thus, as four humans traveled farther from Earth than any others had ever done, I eagerly followed the updates. One of the most high-stakes days was Monday, April 6, when the four astronauts aboard Integrity had their lunar observation day. This day marked the furthest point they were from Earth, approximately 252,757 miles, and surpassed the previously held record for distance traveled of 248,655 miles, which was set by the Apollo 13 mission. The day also had a roughly 40-minute “blackout” period during which we lost communication with the astronauts as the moon blocked radio signals from the NASA Deep Space Network.
So we kept the livestream on in the background while we went about our day.
While these highlights were exciting to watch, they were not what captivated me the most. Instead, it was toward the beginning of their lunar observation, when Astronaut Jeremy Hansen announced the dedication of a bright, newly observed crater to be named “Carroll” in honor of the wife of fellow astronaut and commander of Integrity Reid Wiseman, who died in 2020 from cancer. The dedication time ended with a group hug among all four astronauts as they wept.
I can only imagine the wealth of emotions those four astronauts encountered on their mission. But on that day, with all of its record-setting and newly discovered territory, I didn’t expect to witness grief.
And yet there it was.
I just sat there, as four humans more than 250,000 miles away from me were spectacularly human. As messy, unpredictable, and wild as that can be, there they were—setting records, paving new territory, and riding the waves of all the emotions we humans get to experience.
If you find yourself overwhelmed by the broad spectrum of emotions that come your way, that’s a valid experience. If you wonder whether you should be feeling differently, be assured that you aren’t wrong or “too much” for what you are feeling. As divinely created beings, we experience emotions as part of your humanity. No matter where you are on Earth, and no matter where you are in space, emotions will be there for you to feel, to name, to ride the wave of their highs and lows, and to sit with. All in the name of being wonderfully human.
