I was reading The Marginalian and came across a Reddit AMA where Chris Hadfield, an astronaut, answered questions while orbiting the Earth on the Internation Space Station. I've shared a few of those questions and answers below.
What’s something that surprised you during your space flights?
It's endlessly surprising how continually beautiful our changing, ancient, gorgeous Earth is. Every one of my 1650 orbits I saw something new. And I was up long enough to watch the seasons swap ends on the planet, like Mother Earth taking one breath out of 4.5 billion breaths.
What is your favorite place to see on earth from the ISS?
Two answers:
- Home, the places I have lived, for the flood of connected memories.
- The Bahamas, for the huge visual onslaught of coral reefs and shallows, pierced by the deep tongue of the ocean, that gives it a butterfly-like iridescence of every blue that exists
My question is, what was a moment in your life you felt hopeless or on the verge of giving up? Where you felt like you were failing or a dream was slipping away. What did you do to combat it?
Everyone feels that way - I sure do at 3AM sometimes. But I remind myself that each sunrise is a harbinger of another chance, and to take quiet, unrecognised pride in the accomplishments I get done each day. Each evening my intended list is unfinished, but I celebrate what I've done, and resolve to do better tomorrow. Also, nothing is ever as good or as bad as it first seems. Keep at it with optimism - it is YOUR life to tinker with, learn from, live and love.