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

Genesis 1:1

On October 14, 2021, William Shatner went into space. Yes, the William Shatner who was Captain Kirk on Star Trek.  At the age of 90, he took an eleven minute space flight with Blue Origin where he is officially now the oldest astronaut who has taken flight.  The suborbital trip made a big impression on him.  He said the earth looked “so fragile” and that he was overwhelmed with the value of life on our planet.  His interview made an impression on me when he spoke about breaking through the earth’s atmosphere.  He said the sky was blue, and then within seconds the sky was black. The earth’s atmosphere is only 50 miles wide, so with the speed of the rocket, they would passed through it so quickly.  He said that when he looked at the earth, he could see life, and health, and beauty. And then when he said that he looked out at the space, he said, something to the effect of “sure there are galaxies and stars, but all I saw was starkness and death.”  Through tears he said, “I hope I never get over this experience.”  

I have thought a lot about this interview because I have personally interviewed an astronaut.  When I lived in Sydney, Australia, I was a part of a national radio show with my church (Wesley Mission) on 2GB.  My sister is a pilot and her best friend was Kalpana Chawla.  They racked up hours on their pilot licenses together by flying across country to small airports in small planes.  Kalpana went on to be an astronaut on the space shuttle.  I remember when I interviewed her by phone for the radio show how she described how beautiful the earth was and how stark and cold the black space was in comparison.  She talked about the beauty and warmth of the earth and how fragile the atmosphere was and how we all need to take care of this beautiful planet because it is truly all that we have got.  Kalpana went up a second time in the space shuttle and sadly on February 1, 2004 she and her other crew members did not make it back to earth alive.  She was on the space shuttle Columbia.  I think about her words a lot.  And hearing William Shatner’s interview has made a big impact on me as well.  Our world is such a gift.  This atmosphere is such a gift.  And we as stewards of the earth, and as people of faith, we are called to be caretakers of this precious gift that has been given to us. I am reminded by the great hymn “For the Beauty of the Earth” and how we are called to be in appreciation of this beautiful blue planet of ours we call home.

1. For the beauty of the earth, 
For the glory of the skies, 
For the love which from our birth 
Over and around us lies.

Refrain: Lord of all to Thee we raise 
This our hymn of grateful praise.

2. For the wonder of each hour, 
Of the day and of the night, 
Hill and vale, and tree and flower, 
Sun and moon, and stars of light.(Refrain)

3. For the joy of human love, 
Brother, sister, parent, child, 
Friends on earth and friends above, 
For all gentle thoughts and mild.(Refrain)