Dear Grandkids,
There are a handful of historical events that have happened in my lifetime that I remember exactly where I was when I heard about them…
- I was in the living room of Nona’s home in Kernersville, NC (before we got married) when the US Olympic Hockey Team defeated Russia in an epic cold war victory that shocked the world.
- I was coming out of a theatre in Gloucester, Massachusettes when I heard that there had been an assassination attempt on President Reagan’s life in March of 1981.
- I was in my office in Raleigh, NC when I heard that the Space Shuttle Challenger had exploded in January of 1986.
- I was in my office in Durham, NC when I heard that OJ Simpson had been acquitted in the “Trial of the Century” in October of 1995.
- I was sitting in the parking lot in front of the post office in Durham when I first heard about the 911 attacks in September of 2001.
But the first major historical event that I remember where I was happened 50 years ago today when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin set step on the moon in July of 1969. I was at the beach with my family (and extended family) as we gathered around the television to watch “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” I had just turned 11 years old and I remember staring up at at the moon and thinking “there are people walking around up there.” It was a crazy thought.
In July of 1962 President John F. Kennedy declared that the United States would put a man on the moon before the end of the decade. It was a bold, audacious declaration that he followed up by saying:
“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.”
As you grow up I hope that you will NOT be content to take the easy path. Do hard things! Make bold, audacious choices! Choices that might seem crazy to most people but, because you follow the God who makes all things possible, you are willing to take risks and be daring and act courageously.
I am looking forward to watching how the Lord uses you in the years to come as you pursue a life of faith and take the path less traveled by.
Never forget that you are very loved!
Pop Pop
