RIP: Neil Armstrong, Moonwalker

Neil deGrasse Tyson tweeted last night, "Men Walk On Moon - The only positive event in the last 50 yrs for which everyone remembers where they were when it happened." (I don't tweet. I learned about this message from a Wall Street Journal blog post.)

I thought about that and realized he was right. All the other big events I remember were bad things. The assassination of Kennedy—the first political event I remember. Learning of the death of relatives. Hearing about and seeing terrorist attacks perpetrated by both foreign and American-born terrorists.

Why do we remember the bad things so vividly? Why don't the great things make connections in our minds? Most women have strong memories of childbirth. That is both a good event and a painful time so still fits the theory. As our grandmas pass down memories of family events, how many good things get lost to time? We lose some of the stories of disreputable ancestors when grandma purposefully doesn't tell them. But how many good stories had she forgotten?

Where's the time machine when we need it? Maybe a time machine is a dream. But the only possibility of ever seeing one depends on the kind of research done to explore space. Here's to the future Moonwalkers and Marswalkers that my genealogist descendant may research and that Neil Armstong will inspire.

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To cite this blog post:
Debbie Parker Wayne, "RIP: Neil Armstrong, Moonwalker," Deb's Delvings Blog, posted 26 August 2012 (http://debsdelvings.blogspot.com/ : accessed [date]).

© 2012, Debbie Parker Wayne, CG, All Rights Reserved