CASH MICHAELS
MY WONDERFUL WEEK OF WOKERY
by Cash Michaels
I don’t know about you, but last week, starting with the day after Easter, was a great week for eye-opening, mind-blowing discovery and re-examination for me. What made it such a special time was that all of it unexpectedly came in different forms, and ended with the pinpoint successful conclusion of the Artemus II moon mission and safe return of our four courageous astronauts.
Yes, last week was a great week for wokery, which, for the purposes of this commentary, I’ll simply define as awareness, leaving the racial component folks usually like to harp about out of it. There is no crime in being woke, for it shows that you’re willing to learn and grow, and be open to new ideas, new experiences, and new perspectives.
Folks who are anti-diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) so want woke to mean something negative, but keep in mind, these folks don’t want you to know anything about our nation’s tattered history, feeling that the more you know, the least likely you are to buy into their corrupted version of the truth.
That’s a shame! People would prefer you not know anything about how we all got here, thinking that knowledge somehow makes us weaker. So they work overtime to change our history books, our laws, school curriculums, libraries, museum exhibits, government websites, etc. to ensure that we remain in the dark, that we remain asleep about the things we, as a citizenry, have every right to know.
Well last week, I was among the millions following the extraordinary mission of the Artemus II space lunar fly-by and the four intrepid astronauts who represented all of us, regardless of race, gender, whatever, in man’s continuing quest to reach for the stars. One of the most incredible sights we’ll ever see as inhabitants of this planet is every human being, with outstretched hands, attempting to, as singer Al Jarreau once sang, “touch the face of GOD.”
How did his song “Mornin’” go again?
My heart will soar
With love that's rare and real
My smiling face will feel every cloud
Then higher still beyond the blue until
I know I can like any man reach out my hand
And touch the face of God
You see, there is something truly humbling about seeing pictures/video of the Earth…the whole Earth, from the moon, knowing that those pictures are real. Knowing that for better or for worse, there we are …all of us…on this spinning global mass of rock, graced with oceans and atmosphere and life, kept firmly in place by gravity so we all don’t fly off into the darkness of space. We have no choice but to call this place home.
For me, the sights we saw from the Artemus II mission should reinforce the fact that we didn’t create this place we call Earth. Indeed, despite our many, many years of building and creating great edifaces and tributes to our own egos and accomplishments, none of us have ever come close to the handiwork of GOD.
None of us have ever come close to creating the great and continuing system of life we all exist by today. A blazing ball of fire in our extraterrestrial neighborhood that gives us sufficient heat and light to survive. A moon that stabilizes seasonal and climate patterns, providing us with vital gravitational pull that influences our marine ecosystem and biology. And stars, which help guide us at night, and provide vital elements like carbon, oxygen and nitrogen when they die, as well help maintain the gravitational orbits of planets.
Betcha never expected that I would be dropping some science on you this week, did you? But it’s true. Who else but GOD could design such a magnificent work of art mixing sight and sound and the elements, capped off with what can only be described as the great diversity of life? In my mind, the Artemus II mission last week reminded us…ALL of us…as to who really is in charge, who really does have the power, and that none of us are here by accident.
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The dramatic pictures we saw from the dark other side of the moon - a place no human eyes have ever seen before - reminded us that no matter how advanced we think we are, no matter how much we think we have achieved, we will always be in the age of discovery.
And that should humble us to the point of correcting our behaviors and attitudes towards one another as human beings. Don’t forget, it was just last week when the president of our nation - who recently portrayed himself as a Jesus-like deity (wonder what Evangelist Franklin Graham thinks about that) - threatened to wipe out a “whole civilization” if he didn’t get what he wanted in war, and he seriously believes he has the power and the right to do so.
Such apocalyptic talk touched a nerve in the humanity the rest of us on this planet share, and he found out almost immediately that even though he may think of himself as GOD, or like GOD, he will never be loved or respected in the same breath as Almighty GOD, forcing him to back off such blasphemous utterances.
Watching that drama play out the way it did also greatly contributed to my wonderful week of wokery, and I’m grateful for it.
Another aspect of my glee last week was watching a documentary about President John F. Kennedy, and how, when he was first elected to office, he promised to turn a disastrous NASA space program around, and have this nation landing a man on the moon by the end of the decade.
JFK promised we would no longer trail the Soviets when it came to exploring space (at that point, we had more experience exploring Earth because so many of our rockets either kept crashing or never got off the ground), and that promise was kept, long after his untimely death.
What was it that Astronaut Neil Armstrong first said when he walked on the moon generations ago? “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
As I, along with the rest of the world, nervously watched the four Artemus II astronauts return to Earth Friday night, splashing down precisely at 8:07 EST as predicted off the coast of San Diego, I thought of some of the earlier pioneers of our space program who didn’t live to share their vision, like forty years ago, and the fateful Challenger space shuttle explosion that took the precious lives of its seven crew members, particularly schoolteacher-astronaut Christa McAuliffe, and NC A&T University-trained scientist Ron McNair.
If it’s never been said before, McAuliffe, McNair and the rest of the Challenger crew gave their lives in pursuit of greater knowledge and greater awareness of the world around us, in the space that we all live in.
Watching the four-member crew of Artemus II return safely on the Orion spacecraft and so exactly, was a reminder to all of us that that search for knowledge continues. Going, as actor William Shatner iconically once said in the opening of Star Trek “Where no man has gone before,” and coming back with breathtaking pictures and information that will benefit us all. There’s still so much to learn.
We appreciate Commander Reid Wiseman, Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, pilot Victor Glover, and NC State University’s Christina Koch for their courage, dedication and expertise during the mission. They are four very special human beings who made history last week as they shared their “moon joy” with the world.
Dr. Mae Jemison, the first woman of color to go into space in 1992, said Friday night that the thing that connects and involves all humans on Earth to the Artemus II adventure is that though it was the United States that launched the mission, there were a lot of other countries involved in making it happen.
The Orion service module they flew in is European-made. Many of the NASA engineers who worked in various areas of preparing for the mission came from different countries. There was also the first woman to travel around the moon (Koch), the first person of color (Glover), and the first Canadian (Hansen) to do the same.
“I think that’s the story, about the evolution of where we’ve gone and what we have to do. And we get the most out of space when we have more perspectives,” said Dr. Jemison, who is a practicing physician as well as former astronaut.
Finding the inherent oneness of man through our diversity. How, by working all together in harmony, and achieving victory in the process, we discover the essence of why GOD created us, and made us varied. That’s something we should be celebrating together, not castigating each other for.
Wiseman, Hansen, Glover and Koch said what they saw on the Artemus II mission will change them for the rest of their lives. Maybe that’s what we all need on this Earth. A change of perspectives as to who we really are, and what we’re really supposed to be.
Kinder towards one another.
And that was my wonderful week of wokery.
Now, I dare you to say "wonderful week of wokery" ten times fast (smile).
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