I've Spent My Whole Life

When You Can Feel That Close To Something You're Used To Seeing From This Great Distance, Well, It Changes A Person.

Suppose You Came Across A Woman Lying On The Street With An Elephant Sitting On Her Chest. You Notice She Is Short Of Breath. Shortness Of Breath Can Be A Symptom Of Heart Problems. In Her Case, The Much More Likely Cause Is The Elephant On Her Chest. For A Long Time, Society Put Obstacles In The Way Of Women Who Wanted To Enter The Sciences. That Is The Elephant. Until The Playing Field Has Veen Leveled And Lingering Stereotypes Are Gone, You Can't Even Ask The Question.

Yes, I Did Feel A Special Responsibility To Be The First American Woman In Space.

For Whatever Reason, I Didn't Succumb To The Stereotype That Science Wasn't For Girls. I Got Encouragement From My Parents. I Never Ran Into A Teacher Or A Counselor Who Told Me That Science Was For Boys. A Lot Of My Friends Did.

The Fact That I Was Going To Be The First American Woman To Go Into Space Carried Huge Expectations Along With It.