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AUTHOR LAND WILSON SHARES THE HIGH-FLYING With or without children, our lives can get busy. We are
inundated with miraculous devices that occupy our attention
constantly—cell phones, iPhones, BlackBerries, computers,
televisions, handheld games, etc. We have more distractions than ever.
With all of these distractions, it is easy to overlook other things in life. I notice this when I take time to step away from it all. On average, every other day I walk out my front door and go on an hour-long walk. Only minutes after I leave behind the chaos of a house buzzing with children and electronic devices does it hit me how much I don’t see when I am consumed by my personal life. I’m sure the endorphins that start pumping in me as my heart rate increases help me to appreciate things, but what really starts to “wow” me are the miraculous details I notice in nature: bird nests inconspicuously dotting tree after tree, scrub jays squawking at an opportunistic long-eared owl, bursts of bright fluorescent pink feathers from mating hummingbirds, the heavy knock on an old dead tree by a pileated woodpecker, or a skittish bobcat darting away from a creek bed. I have always loved nature, and I am fortunate to live in a county that has put a high value on preserving open spaces and protecting its natural resources. After an hour of exercise and attention to nature’s miracles, I invariably return home refreshed and with lifted spirits.
This idea of paying more attention to nature and the environment around us is something I began exploring in my writing many years ago. The idea of inspiring love and respect for the environment in children with a story was exciting, but finding a creative, engaging way to do so was quite a challenge.
When I began my research, I was surprised to find a specific group of people who had something significant to say about nature and our environment: astronauts. I read that viewing our planet from a distance was an experience that genuinely transforms the way a person thinks about Earth. I was privileged to be able to arrange three interviews with Apollo astronauts—Walter M. Schirra Jr. (commander of Apollo 7, pilot of Gemini 6A and pilot of Mercury-Sigma 7), Eugene Cernan (pilot of Gemini 9, lunar module pilot aboard Apollo 10 and commander of Apollo 17) and Frank Borman (crew member of Gemini 7 and commander of Apollo 8). All three of these early veterans of space exploration expressed in their words that the view of Earth from space transforms the human understanding of who we are on this world and of what we are doing to it.
Col. Frank Borman observed, “In space, you see how beautiful the Earth is with its blues and white clouds; brownish, pinkish continents. It’s alone in the vastness of space. You see that it is fragile and you want its people to be responsible citizens because this is the only world we have.” Eugene Cernan remarked, “When you can blot out your link to reality with your thumb, it’s overwhelming to be that far away from home. This place represents everything you understand. It represents your family and what you feel. It’s too beautiful to have happened by accident.”
The most unexpected thing I learned during the interviews was conveyed to me by Capt. Walter M. Schirra Jr. He said, “From space, you can see pollution on Earth in the form of discolored waters created by people in populated areas, which then flows out into the oceans. And when you see that our ozone layer is no more than an eggshell, you realize that humans had better learn to be more careful with Earth.” Hearing this gave me a better understanding of the magnitude of our effect on the Earth, and it ignited in me a real sense of urgency to get this information across to more people.
As a result of these interviews, I challenged myself to create a story that could somehow convey to children some of these important revelations about nature and protecting our environment. I also wanted children to know that they can be environmental stewards and that they can—actually, they must—make a difference. The astronauts inspired me to write what would one day become a children’s picture book recently published by Little Pickle Press LLC (www.littlepicklepress.com), an environmentally friendly and community-minded publisher.
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