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"FIRST MAN ON THE MOON"
American, Neil Armstrong, 1969
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"¶ O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. 2 Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. 3 ¶ When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; 4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? 5 For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. 6 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:" |
I didn't see any of the footage of this historic and momentous event in Viet Nam, but the whole rest of the world did. Colonel Armstrong was the first American, the first man, the first human being to ever rest the sole of his foot against the dusty surface of the moon, a dream of mankind for millennia.
Following are some photographs of that event, which were sold in a set of 10 in variety stores for a dollar, later. I bought these at King's Department Store in my home town in 1970, home on leave from Viet Nam.
Armstrong stands alone where no other man had ever stood before, the surface of the moon.
For many hundreds of years, explorers planted flags and establidhing claims of new lands for their countries and their sovereigns. Planting the flag claims the spot and the event, if not the moon itself for the united States of America.
The work of launching and repairing satellites and other craft in space was tested on this heroic expedition.
The image of a solitary footprint reminds us of the statement Armstrong made following his sojourn upon the dusty crust of the moon; "One small step for man. One giant leap for mankind". This "step" involved more than just the curiosity of America, it was to begin a new avenue of possibility for all mankind.
Every step taken was uncharted territory and a unique opportunity to gather data that would help us learn more about our earth. Soil and rock samples were taken and analyzed, the results charted and released for our understanding. By the way, the analysis of these materials argues for a young earth.
Communications hardware was also set up to allow scientists on earth to monitor the moon and space for further information.
With the mission accomplished and his name entered in the annuls of time and history for posterity, the astronaught returns to his moon craft for return to earth.
Having completed the tasks given him, Colonel Armstrong prepares to reenter the craft to return to the orbiting capsule for the voyage back to earth.
The long, clumsy climb back into the landing craft.
With a full earth rising over the horizen and a hold full of samples, the craft wends its way back to the capsule for the journey to earth, leaving the face of the moon far behind.
Now, I wasn't on the moon taking pictures, NASA's photography robot system was. I didn't see Armstrong when he returned home to a hero's welcome and a "ticker-tape" parade, but he did come to Viet Nam with Bob Hope at Christmas, where I did see him. That is where you came in.
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Last Update: December 25, 2003
Song: "FLY ME TO THE MOON"
From Del Ackley's MIDI HAVEN