When I First Looked Back

I Woke Up An Hour Before I Was Supposed To, And Started Going Over The Mental Checklist: Where Do I Go From Here, What Do I Do? I Don't Remember Eating Anything At All, Just Going Through The Physical, Getting Into The Suit. We Practiced That So Much, It Was All Rote.

Why Don't You Fix Your Little Problem And Light This Candle?

I Didn't Mind Studying. Obviously Math And The Physical Science Subjects Interested Me More Than Some Of The More Artistic Subjects, But I Think I Was A Pretty Good Student.

There's No Question That All The Generations Got Excited About The First Flights, With Kennedy's Inspiration To Go To The Moon, Leaving The Planet For The First Time, And Fortunately Coming Back.

Then There Was The Challenge To Keep Doing Better And Better, To Fly The Best Test Flight That Anybody Had Ever Flown. That Led To My Being Recognized As One Of The More Experienced Test Pilots, And That Led To The Astronaut Business.