Forty years ago, NASA made dreams come true, as humans stepped foot for the first time on the moon. What has impressed me is hearing over and over the praises of former NASA directors who recall the importance each member of the team, which was in the hundreds if not thousands, had in making the mission a reality. Indeed, it’s a perfect example of the power we have as a nation—when we realize that we’re not in it alone.
Tough challenges require team work. And as we look ahead at the challenges we face as a nation—the economy, health reform, immigration, etc.—there’s a lot we can learn from the thousands of nameless laborers who helped Neil Armstrong take that giant leap.
President Obama has done an excellent job in returning our country’s focus back on to "We The People," shifting it from what I would argue has been the mantra of American life during the housing boom of this past decade, a culture that cried in its rush for individual prosperity, "Me The People."
The moon landing, more than anything, brought America together during a tumultuous time. It lifted up our founding values of community and opportunity, reminding us that no dream was too big when we all come together. Perhaps, in this new era, our sea of Tranquility can be realized in the dreams for a fair and just economy, in a world that respects the dignity and rights of all, in a future that doesn’t rely on fuels that hurt our own beautiful planet. When three astronauts looked down upon our small green and blue rock forty years ago this week, they realized how much we truly were connected, how we were all in it together. Our job is to carry this knowledge forward, as we work toward finding solutions that bring security, mobility, opportunity, and all our other treasured national values within the reach of every person who calls our own rock home.
Read more at The Opportunity Agenda website.
