HATCHED, NOT BORN

My mother explained, shortly after I began to walk, that I was hatched and not born.  She left it at that, and throughout my life I never questioned it.  However, to some extent it explains the life I’ve led, and an almost insatiable desire to learn and absorb all I experienced.

Am I an alien?  It didn’t bother me because most of the members of my family were more than “mere” mortals sailing fleets of ships, climbing tall mountains (I got half ‘way up Mt. Kenya), building mansions, painting and writing.  They were fascinating.

My father didn’t blink when I blew up the chemistry lab at boarding school.  He was secretly delighted as a chemical engineer, because I was developing a new formula for bleaching hair.

Yes, I admit that I gave normal birth to my son and daughter.  However, as soon as I could, I turned my son’s interest toward sci-fi.  I always had someone with whom to go to  alien movies!

Yes, I am deeply concerned about preservation of our natural resources and “the greening of the planet”.  I also consider what will happen if we wake up one day and find that our planet can no longer support human life.  The endless debris floating in space concerns me, and I want to find a “nasty” black hole out there and dump it all in…

When I flew on the Concorde (alas, no more) I got a taste of flight at mach speeds, and wondered what I might see in the blackness beyond my tiny window.  Fortunately, Sir Richard Branson will soon offer “space” flights to folks like me who can afford the price tag.

We have come so far with our journey into space.  What next?  I’m ready.