The Artemis II Crew Share with Oprah the Wisdom of Leaving Earth

Hello, hello, hello. Hello, and you. Hi, Jeremy. Hello, hello, hello, hello. I have waited my whole life for this. Guess who's on the podcast [music] this. week? Artemis talk. I lost my mind. I can't wait till that's. posted. That's my ringtone. >> [laughter]. >> Hi, everybody on the planet Earth. It's. such an exciting day around here in my. backyard. You know, I remember.

just being 15 years old and I was. watching the first moon landing and. hearing Neil Armstrong say, That's one. small step for man, one. giant leap for mankind. And at the time, I couldn't even believe. it. I remember standing in my aunt's. house and they're like, are they really. on the moon? I don't know. Are they. really on the moon? Yes, they were on. the moon. So, now over five decades.

later, the Artemis 2 astronauts have. returned to Earth after making their own. history. Here's a quick look at that. remarkable, remarkable journey. For the first time in nearly 54 [music]. years, the Artemis 2 crew is go for. launch. 4 3 2 1. The world held its breath. Booster. ignition. and liftoff as NASA launched four.

astronauts into space to complete a. mission to the moon. The crew of Artemis. 2 now bound for the moon. The crew of Artemis 2 included American. astronauts Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot. Victor Glover, mission specialist. Christina [music] Koch, and Canadian. mission specialist Jeremy Hansen. >> This is Jeremy. We are going for all. humanity. They spent more than 9 days inside a. spacecraft [music] named "Integrity".

And we forgot how beautiful it is to. look down on Earth. Using gravity to. slingshot around the far side of the. Moon, Integrity reached 252,756. miles from [music] Earth, the greatest. distance ever traveled into space by. human beings. To all of you down there. on Earth and around Earth, we love you from the Moon. Artemis crew captured the world's. attention. I don't think humanity has. evolved to the point of being able to. comprehend what [music] we were looking. at right now because it was.

otherworldly. It was amazing. >> Not only for their awe-inspiring courage. [music] going to the far side of the. Moon and back. >> What struck me, it wasn't necessarily. just Earth, it was all the blackness. [music] around it. Earth was just this. lifeboat hanging undisturbingly in the. universe. But also for the unique. perspective they shared, a message of. unity and hope. The purpose of humanity. is joy and lifting one another up, creating together. This is a whole bunch. of nothing, this thing we call the.

universe. You have this oasis, this. beautiful place that we get to exist. together. I am just I the word honor doesn't even. say enough, but I am so honored to be. able to welcome you all to my backyard. Thank you. Thank you so much. The. Artemis 2 crew, you all know them by. name now, Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and. mission specialist Jeremy Hansen. It is.

a joy. I I I love that statement that. humanity not being able to actually. comprehend. what you all saw and experienced, and. I'm wondering now that you're back down. to Earth in gravity, whether the. comprehension has become more real for. you. Does it get more real every day or. is it still something that happened out. there? I actually maybe it's getting. less real every day Oprah. It is It has. not gotten more real for me. I I go back. and look at we we all did a lot of.

journaling while we were up there and. we're just starting to dig into those. journals and and and really read through. them. And it just I just cannot believe we. went and did this. I can't believe that. the world trusted us to go do this and. then the the world followed along. It's. It's like It is the greatest honor. >> And every time you see the tape as you. were rolling the tape leading into this. episode, I could see you're still. looking at it like that actually. happened, right? I got to fly with. Christina, Victor, and Jeremy who are. just the best friends. So, I heard you. started out as friends and then became. best friends. Is that what happened?

Absolutely and I think we have a lot to. thank our commander for because he set. out that purpose from the beginning that. our ultimate goal was to come back as. best friends and it really set the tone. for how we showed up for each other, how. we handled our team cohesion. intentionally. We worked on it and um. I'm really happy with where we ended up. But, I want to get back to that. question. Victor, do you do you feel. grounded yet? Has the impact of what.

happened out there. including all of the press reaction from. the rest of the world and our. impressions of you, has that landed with. you yet? Hearing that question come from you. >> [laughter]. >> I I can easily say no, it has not. It. it's still pretty unreal. I spent the. two weeks right after we got back when. we were focusing on science collection. and reconditioning, going to the gym, and. making sure that we were all healthy. And I wasn't watching the news, I wasn't.

online, and uh then we started the the. media tour uh last week and it's just. been amazing. I think we we set out. trying to do something meaningful, you. know? And and I think we are now seeing. we we maybe did okay. Uh and and and the. reaction is it is unreal. It's what we. read that earlier, like it's it's hard. to put it in context and uh it's it's. sitting here in your backyard. It makes. it seem even more unreal. Well, this is not. >> I'm having an out-of-body experience, but yes. So, I want to know what has.

moved you the most about the world's. reaction. What has moved you the most. about the world's reaction to this. journey because I I I think. that every single person who experienced. watching you all do that. was moved inside in a way that not even. we expected. So, what has moved you, Jeremy? It's uh so heartwarming for all of us in. that people just paid attention to. something that was positive, collaborative, and for me it's just such.

a sigh. >> it. >> Absolutely. It was a sigh of relief that. we don't want to just pay attention to. the negative. We actually do want to. create together. We do want to lift each. other up and it was just we got home and. it's like, oh, wow, people want that. Thank goodness. Wow. And this is the. thing, when you have had. the peak ultimate experience. that no one else has had. You've. traveled a farther distance from the. planet Earth than anyone else has. How do you come back down to Earth and.

enjoy a cup of coffee on the porch? Mhm. Well, actually, it's funny because. that's exactly what we enjoy the most. We enjoy these small things and there. may be this perspective change, at least. for me I experience it say when I'm. walking on the beach and I look up at. the blue sky and I imagine what it. looked like looking down at Earth and. the beautiful bright blue that is the. sky from from the other direction and I. can picture that and I can picture the. planet that I'm on on this universal.

scale. But it just teaches you to just. savor those small moments because when. you're that far away. that's the only thing that matters. because you're looking at a planet where. every single person you love is. Every. misstep, every success, every single cup of coffee is there, and. those things are what truly matters. They're They're what bring meaning to a. huge giant universe. >> I think uh one of the things that struck. me is that.

you all realized immediately, but you. you've seen this before cuz you've all. lived in space station, so you know that. that we're suspended out here in this. this black space, and I love the word the use of the word. lifeboat, that we are We are the We are. the lifeboat. And that. you can see from up there that all the. things that we're fighting about, that. there are no boundaries. I think that's. what you said, Victor. I I wish we could find a way to get.

billions of people to space to see that. perspective. It would not fix all of the. things that are going on on the planet, but it sure would give some perspective, and and and and build buy-in, you know, just a willingness to look at things. >> Build buy-in. It's buy-in, willingness. It's all about willingness, and I think. that perspective can just nudge us in. that direction because it does It does. truly put things in perspective. Um you. get so far away from it. You know, I was thinking about this. quote this poem while Christina was just.

talking. There's a uh T.S. Eliot poem. Little Gidding, and it's got this line. that. we shall not cease from exploration. At. the end of our exploring is this that we. will return home and see it as for the. first time. Mhm. >> That cup of coffee, that neighbor, that. handshake, Oprah's backyard, it all has a slightly. different feel and context when you get. to go away from it and miss it a little. bit, and I wish everybody could miss. Earth. That is a a gift to be able to. say I missed Earth. But you come back, and I think now all.

of us feel like. we are ambassadors of that, and you just. have to find a way to share that. Was. ultimately it a You all say you all kept. journals. I've been keeping a journal. forever. I love that you did. It was an. ultimately a. a life-altering spiritual experience. What How would you How would you. categorize it? I think I'm still thinking about that, but I. I definitely was deeply impacted by this. journey. And I I do think it was a very. spiritual experience. But I also think.

that spiritual experience was presented. to us because of the way we treated each. other on this mission. Mhm. We had so. much love for each other. And I do not. use that word lately. We had so much. love for each other. >> Did you start out with the love? Yes, we. start We were very intentional about. this, and I think we did start out with. it. But you never know what's going to. happen when the when the engines light. and when you're in space. And there were. just moments right from the beginning of. this mission. >> all get along because you'd been working. together on the Yes. For 3 years. So. there was a baseline.

respect and regard for each other as. colleagues. Of course, but there's. always friction in there. There's always. friction in any human relationship. Still, sure. >> Yeah. I think we surprised ourselves. We. after we landed, we we talked about just. There was an extraordinary amount of. grace up there. >> [laughter]. >> Um even though that you know, that was a. bit of the expectation, I think it. exceeded my expectations. There was a. lot of grace given. So tell us how were. you all selected? How does this process. work? First, you have to become an. astronaut. That's pretty competitive. I. think there's a lot of luck that comes.

in that. The numbers are tiny and the. the applications are large. Go to Houston interview for the job. To. become an astronaut, I think the primary. thing they look at You know you have a. good technical background, but they just. look Can you Can you survive as a team. player in a small spacecraft for a long. time? And then for this mission in. particular, I think we were just We were all. experienced space station flyers. We. were fairly known quantities. We had. Jeremy as the rookie, but he got. selected when I got selected, and he's. probably the textbook team player. Team. skills with Jeremy are are really.

phenomenal. We knew with the agency, we. knew the mission, we knew each other. pretty well, so it was pretty easy. there. But there's a little bit of luck. as well. A little bit of what? Explain. >> Because there's you know, our office is. 50 or so people and. there are folks that are on the space. station that have the skills and the. timing was just they were gone in space. already and and so they weren't even in. the pool to be selected and so I I just. want to acknowledge that Absolutely. you. can work hard and think, "Hey, I'm I'm a. great person for that mission." But you. may not the timing just may not work. So.

we are all very lucky. But the person. who put this together or the team that. put this together and said it's going to. be you and it's going to be you and it's. going to be you must have seen something. in each of you to say, "This is this is. a good fit." I think you could take any. any four from our office and. and put them together and get a good. fit. I really do. I believe that. >> And there's also something special about. knowing that there's no way we are the. ultimate four best people for this. mission. And we have to accept that and. recognize that bringing our best to the.

table is all we can do. And to carry. that burden of knowing that there is. luck involved and we aren't necessarily. the perfect people if you looked at all. across the billions on the planet, but. we're the ones that have the honor and. responsibility and we're going to do our. best. >> I was over. Yeah. That was awesome. Okay, so what was I I have read and. heard that the greatest bonding moment. was when you all were on the other side. of the moon and you named the crater. after your wife Carol and that after.

that moment you all were just like. connected forever. Is that was that the. moment? Or was there a series of. moments? >> ask the whole crew, but for me in. particular, that was that was the moment. where there was But we were bonded at. that moment. Our science team helped us out with a. couple of. relatively fresh craters on the moon. that have not been previously named and. our crew would like to propose a a. couple of potential names for those.

items or those areas. And so, at certain. times of the moon's transit around. Earth, we will be able to see this from. Earth. A number of years ago, we started. this journey in our close-knit astronaut. family, and we lost a loved one. This was Sue Reed, the mother of Katie. and Ellie. And it's a it's a bright spot on the. moon. And we would like to call it Carol. And you spell that c a.

r r o l l. Integrity and Carol crater. Loud and. clear. Thank you. Wow. That was a moment. It's kind of. like how you asked if going was a. spiritual experience. It you it's yes. and no. That moment. did something, but it also showed. things that were in work for 3 years. We. have been running this race, this lap of.

this race for a long time. And you know, it there was a a moment where Christina. came up with this idea. I believe it was. originally your thought. We talked about it, the three of us. Jeremy went and and and talked to Reed. to make sure that it would be okay. But then, I really do believe it was. magic. When he started to speak during. the mission, it just I don't he I don't think he. wrote it down. >> about Carol, yes. And he he just it he got choked up, and. and we all got choked up at different.

times. The part that caught me is when. he said it was a we were just looking at. images, and it's a a fresh a newer. crater, and it's it's bright. It. actually is a very light what they call. a high albedo spot on the moon. And he. said Carol was a bright spot, and that's. that was the moment that I lost it. And. I think the hugging was starting, and it. just it it did do something, but it also. reminded us of something that had been. going on for 3 years. >> So, what did that mean for you and your. family? One of your daughters posted. about what that meant to have. That moment really came together.

People don't know how much they should. cherish Jeremy right right at that. moment because that moment was not. planned for for that time. We didn't. know when we were going to do that and. both of my children had come into. mission control to sit in the back when. we passed the distance record for Apollo. 13 and we could look out the window and. see that crater. And Jeremy just knew it was the right. time. It was the right time to do that. and I think for for my kids, we haven't. unpacked any of that yet. I think that's.

down the road, but just to know that. that their mom who they they love. for eternity. there's a. there's a bright spot on the moon. There's a bright spot on the moon. named after Carol. How did you know that. was a moment, Jeremy? I think you know, sometimes you just. have a feeling. When we like Victor. said, when we saw. um for the first time, that was when I I. was like, oh, I actually feel like I. have the words now to do this. We when. we were planning on the ground, I just. didn't know if I'd be able to see it. with the naked eye and.

um Kelsey and our science team helped. send me some images so I could basically. follow the breadcrumbs on the moon going. from the big craters to follow and map. it till we could get to the the smaller. items and then when we finally saw them. and they were so visual like sitting. right there and then I just I knew I had. the words somewhere inside of me and. we were talking to the ground team and I. just keyed the mic and kept going. Wow. We can't imagine all of the incredible. moments that you all experienced there.

I heard you talk about witnessing an. Earth set and just hearing the word. Earth set I made my eyes water because I. I love watching sunsets so much and so. an Earth set, explain to us what an. Earth set is. As you're going around the far side of. the moon, you get the privilege of. watching. the only planet that we know houses life. set behind the moon, just like when. you're at the beach and you watch the.

sunset over the waves and you can just. see the sun start to evaporate down in. the atmosphere. There's no atmosphere on. the moon, but we could certainly watch. as our home planet. started to set. When the sun sets, you see it start to. miss shape through the atmosphere. If. you're If you're at the beach and you. look at it over the When the earth sets. behind the moon, I've said this multiple times in. different ways. I've never said it this. way, but you know for a fact the moon. cannot sustain life because there is no. atmosphere. And as you're watching in. crystal clarity with your human eye, the.

earth setting behind the moon, you can. see the craters and the mountains on the. moon in. the earth setting behind the moon. because there is no atmosphere. It's. just crystal clear as that occurs. And then it's gone. In a blink of an. eye, it's gone. Yeah. One of the things you said is that I. don't believe humanity is even prepared. for what we're looking at right now. What did you mean when you said that? Victor was up in the docking hatch. window and and I was coming off a camera. and he said, "Come on up and take a.

look." And he moved out of the way and I. looked out that docking hatch at the. moon. And at this point, the sun had. eclipsed behind the moon. So now we had. this. this dark gray sphere in front of us and. a little bit of earthshine on the left. side. The sun was bouncing off the earth. and illuminating a little bit of the. left side of the moon. And it was perfectly three-dimensional. and nothing that I had prepared for in. that entire journey prepared me to look. out and see that. And I was so thankful. that I had my friend there. And just to be honest, he witnessed it,

too. I did. The best I could do was just suggest. somebody come look at it. >> [laughter]. >> I I I really. you know, The idea that people trusted. us to go do this, is that scientists. were counting on us to describe what we. were seeing. I I really. took that serious and loved sharing what. we were seeing and how it felt. I didn't have it for that. I just I This. took another brain, another set of eyes. Like I cannot start putting words to it. There's so much about that you can see.

the picture. You know, we take pictures sometimes and. when there's something bright, you can't. see the stars in the background, for. example, but I could see the ring around. the moon glowing and so there was a a. halo around the moon, but I could see. stars through it. I mean, my that alone. I went Wait, I don't. I do not understand, but I'm looking at. it. I I I understand you burst into tears. when you could see the the chaplain on. the ship. What what was What was behind. that? >> I'm not a religious person. I just had. no other way to When you come back from. space, first of all, you have a lot of.

adrenaline and we got into the Navy ship. and I just I'm looking across at at. Victor and I it popped into my head that. on every Navy ship there is a chaplain. And I knew there would be a chaplain on. that ship, so I asked if we could see. the chaplain and when he walked in, I. just I just lost completely lost. emotional control. I There like of. everybody on that ship, I thought he was. probably the one that could come the. closest to relating to what the four of. us had just been through. That is also. It was a powerful moment for you. That was.

of of all these amazing things, that was. a powerful moment for me to watch you do. that. I just We talk about integrity. Our ship. was integrity. And instead of. >> that it was named that. Yes, my gosh. >> And and to to to live in integrity, we. had an instructor from the National. Outdoor Leadership School that talked. about, you know, you It's not you have. integrity or you don't have it. Sometimes you're in it and sometimes. you're out, working to get back in. And. so, being in integrity, this this. statement makes me feel the same way. It's I'm not a religious person or I'm.

not a spiritual person, but I would say. that even I'm not speaking for you, but. watching you, that was a spiritual. moment for me. It was like being in. integrity. Mhm. So, I want to know what was that moment. like for each of you, for you, you, and. Christina, and Jeremy, and Victor. Did. each of you have one of those moments? You all had that moment together? Yeah. What was a defining moment? Well, maybe. the theme is home because when people.

ask me what surprised me the most about. my space station mission and what you. saw that surprised you the most, I say. it was how you felt when you looked down. at your home, where you're from, [snorts] where you grew up, a place that. you learned to identify on a map by the. shape of the landforms. And for me, the. first time I saw the Outer Banks of. North Carolina come around, and I first. realized they crystallized that that's. where they were, and I knew what that. felt like to be on that spot on planet.

Earth. It was home, and it took my breath away. And something on this mission that was a. little different was we couldn't make. out specific landforms or places on. Earth, but the entire planet was home. Mhm. And it was so far away and so perfect. that I almost expected like I could look. out the other window and see Neptune, and that wouldn't be [laughter] home. And the fact that that entire planet was.

home and there was so much else that. wasn't was just. something I'm still. still coming to terms with. Mhm. It was. so small. Like, I just. >> When I hear her talking about this. planet out the window, I just I need you. to visualize that it was. about the size of your your fingernail. out the window. It was so small that we. started calling home tiny Earth. And I just want I want people that. listen to this or to watch this to. understand. you just can't process how small Earth.

is until you're 250,000 miles away from. it and all of that becomes so real. Jeremy, for you, the moment? >> So many I could share with you, but I. will pick one. that really surprised me that I wasn't. prepared for. From all the videos and. images I've seen before I I flew, was. when I would look out and I would see. tiny Earth, but then I would see, you. know, not the field of view of a camera, but like the field of view of a human. brain. And, you know, when I I'm on. Earth and I look up in the night sky and. I see all the stars and to me they're.

sort of painted on a canvas in the night. sky. But when I saw them from space, it. was like they were it was a diorama I. was looking at and they had depth and I. could see like these ones look closer, these ones look like they're further. But I wasn't just viewing this diorama, I was in the diorama. And to have the. Earth and the Moon and all of that. juxtaposition, I I don't have the words, but it was. this three-dimensional. the three-dimensionality of it that just. every time I saw that and perceived it,

I was awestruck. Well, Victor, we all know you were the. pilot for Artemis II. As a young boy. growing up, was this the fulfillment of. something that was beyond. anything you could have imagined or was. this a part of the dream? Beyond. Beyond beyond imaginable, you know. Um. I didn't know. pilots when I was young and so I It's so. interesting. I hear Reid talk about his. childhood and one of to be an engineer,

but thinking that that meant driving. trains. So I wanted to drive trains. because mentors told me, "Hey, you're. good at math, you might want to be an. engineer." So I I. way way beyond. Um. but I I I used to stare up at the Moon. and so it's so amazing that that image, this thing that all of us look at all. the time, and maybe take for granted a little bit. to get to see it in a new way. Maybe it is a little bit of a, you know, accomplishment of a dream that's always.

been back there. But definitely beyond anything I could. imagine. >> You you you said we explore to learn. about where we are, why we are, understanding the big questions about. our place in the universe, which I think. um a lot of people think about often. So, what have you learned about our our. about that big question about our place. in the universe? First, to get comfortable with big questions. To get comfortable with questions. We're. so quick to defend a position and want. to have a a debate,

but to just appreciate questions. I That That's. I am very comfortable not knowing. I. don't have the answer. Did any of you. think that. perhaps. there's some other life out here. somewhere? Does That thought has to occur to you. that we can't be the only ones on on. tiny Earth? And and so, how have you resolved that. question for yourself? If statistically. speaking, you just look at how big the.

universe is and you think there's got to. be something out there. And with all of. the efforts of the United States and and. our all of our partner governments, we. have not found it yet. And so, I would say that it's it's it's. this massive opportunity for for there. to be something, uh but also a reminder. how important it is for us to take care. of this something that we know, uh because we we haven't found another. place that we could do this yet. Okay, so let's talk about this. I I. just interviewed um Jim Collins. recently. Jim Collins is one of the.

great um. leadership executives and teachers and. philosophers in the country. He wrote. Good to Great and all the businesses use. that book, Good to Great. And he just. recently wrote a book called What to. Make of a Life. And he begins his story. talking about John Glenn and how John. Glenn first saw airplanes in the sky and. then wanted to be a pilot. And he says. that John Glenn. didn't just aspire to be an astronaut,

but that John Glenn and all the other. people he writes about in in in his. book, What to Make of a Life, were. encoded for it. He says John Glenn was. encoded. to be an astronaut. I see you smiling. Were you encoded. to be an astronaut? Like. it's just in it's just in there. I can start. with this, but it's just because I have. an anecdote, because I don't know the. real answer to that, but. about 2 years ago, I decided I wanted to.

learn to swim, and I am not coordinated. I'm the least. coordinated person you can imagine, and. my husband watched me struggle for about. a year and a half straight to try to. learn to swim. To I would actually try. to learn just to kick my feet and go. straight in the pool, and I would go. backwards, and people would say, "What. were you doing? Was that some kind of a. drill?" And I would say, "No, I'm just. that bad at swimming." And my husband. told me, "Honey, you were made to be an. astronaut.

>> [laughter]. >> You were not made to swim.". And I feel like one person believes in. me that I'm made to be an astronaut. >> Okay. Okay, I like that anecdote. If I. could just see one common thread is like. Christine often says what she would. recommend to young folks is to do things. that scare you. Like do things out of. your comfort zone. And when I look at. the four of us in our astronaut office. as a whole, we are fairly comfortable. doing things that.

that are. you just kind of throw yourself into it. There's a There's. If If there was a helicopter sitting. over there, I would want to just go get. in it and figure it out. There's just We. just have that kind of natural. curiosity. I almost think it's a. curiosity. Just put me in an unknown. position and then me see if I can work. my way through it. And I think I when I. look at the four of us, we we we just. like that. That is something we just. enjoy doing. Jeremy, you you really I love it when. you talk about every every human has a. gift. Oh, yes. Well, that was a something that. was shared with me from an indigenous.

elder at the Turtle Lodge that created. this mission patch for the canine aspect. to the mission. And um and each of these. there's like seven animals they. represent the seven sacred laws, but. there's one teaching that I really love. and it's the teaching of the beaver and. it's. um the beaver has a special gift. Of. course, it can chew down trees. No one. else can nothing else can chew down. trees, but it has the wisdom to know how. to use its gift to change its. environment in a manner that supports. others in bringing their gifts to the. world. I heard that you were grappling. with this question of how could you.

possibly be happy when people are dying. and suffering through throughout the. world? Um you know, that question I really. answered when I I went on the vision. quest with this elder um and that was. the question I was really struggling. with at that time. And um the sort of. the epiphany I had was that, you know, Jeremy, you don't carry the weight of. the world on your shoulders. Your job. every day is to wake up to try to leave. the world better than you found it, to. try to contribute your energy in a way.

that lifts others up and that is where. you source your joy. And if everybody. just tries to do that simple thing just. not as hard as we make it. If you try to. do that simple thing, you can have joy. Mhm. Okay, now I want to talk about that lift. off and traveling through Earth's. atmosphere. What's going to be your mind. in that moment? We're at 39 times the. speed of sound. We're at 6 miles every. not 6 miles a minute. Second. 6 miles a. second. 25,000 miles. >> miles You're 25,000.

miles per hour. A lot. Maybe all of the things are going Yep. Um. teamwork, trust in your team. We had an amazing relationship with the. folks that designed the the one piece of. equipment that does. all of the work or most of the work on. re-entry, which is the heat shield. Yeah. And we had an incredible. relationship with them. And we really came together as a team. And I was thinking about them and I was.

thinking about this team. And I was. thinking about the team I was coming. home to. >> about all that went into making that. lift off off off possible. And you just. mentioned the space station. So you were. out there longer than any female has. ever been there. How many days? 328. days? >> 328. >> And and you did like 5,000. orbits? If someone counted that that's probably. right. I don't I'm not sure. >> Yes. And so how is that experience.

compared to what you just experienced? Yeah. Wow. Um, you know, I think that the. thing that struck me and my takeaway on. perspective that was different was how. far away we were from our home planet. >> Cuz it doesn't it's not that far away. when you're at the space station. >> When you're at the space station, you're. about 250 miles up. So we were about a. thousand times farther and you can see a. horizon. You can make out land forms. >> And.

all of the things. >> doesn't look like tiny earth. It looks. like bigger earth, right? >> gorgeous big beautiful earth and there's. so many things that come with that with. being able to identify places on earth. And maybe you could say though that the. more important difference is where we. went. We went to the moon. We have a. relationship with the moon, which is. something that's meant something to all. of us. It's meant something to. civilization since the beginning of. time. And we left part of ourselves there. We.

miss it. And having that this destination that we. got to go explore. is is another aspect that we we have to. internalize. Different from the space station. >> internalizing it. >> I'm still internalizing. >> Probably for the rest of our lives. >> But the space station enabled our. mission. The 25 years of continuous. people living on board, everything we've. learned there about how to operate, about teamwork, we brought that with us. >> And you learn how to be in a tiny little.

space and. yeah. Does it ever get to the point where. you're like, you can't be claustrophobic and they. must know you're not claustrophobic, right? Does it ever get to the point. where. Surprisingly, I mean, we joked before we. went. I mean, I would often say, "I'm. sure when they open that hatch on day 10. that we will be ready to get out." But I. was not ready to get out. I was not at. all. If they had said we could have. stayed in space longer, I would have. been like, "I'm fine with that." Really? He kept joking on the mission that we're. going to do a a perigee raise burn, which would mean we would go by the.

Earth and do it all over again. We're. going to keep [laughter] going. A. victory lap. We're ready. Let's look at this photo. Look this. photo, we found this photo, my team did, from 19 This is a control room, 1969, Apollo 11 launch. JoAnn Morgan is the. only woman. and she's instrumentation controller. And, you know, if you're looking at the. wide shot of the picture, you have to. squint to actually see her in that. photograph. And now 30% I hear of the.

Artemis launch team on the ground were. were women. Yes. I think about how hard that must. have been for her. Yeah, how Yeah. >> First and foremost. And then when you. say 30%, I wonder why it's not 50. But. it is it is great to have the team that. we have. Yeah. So, what do you want to. say to young women? I think what I would really want to say. to them right now in this moment is you. are enough. Mhm. And I say that because.

So, in my high school, someone donated a. statue of me. And it made me uneasy. Something about. it just didn't sit perfectly well with. me, and it wasn't just my my humility or. something like that. And I finally put my finger on it. I I. was worried that the the people that. would walk through the door and see it. would think that they weren't enough. Mhm. >> Because that statue was too perfect of a. representation. And at the little speech making that.

that I did when it opened, I made sure. to talk about the person I was in high. school and how unsure I was of myself, how many mistakes I made, how many. people I hurt, people that hurt me. And. I just wanted them to know that they. don't have to be as perfect as the. statue. And sometimes, right now, I feel like. this crew is a little bit like that. statue. Mhm. We. in being here and talking about the. superlatives, it doesn't tell the whole. story because.

we have a long story, a lot of people. [laughter] behind us, a lot of missteps, couple of victories, but all that came together to make us. these people that very humanly. carried carried everyone's dreams around. the far side of the moon. But, you know, before we did that, we we were enough. And I would say to them, you are, too. Well, you know what's so interesting is. that from. everything that we have seen of you, you know, going off into space, coming.

back, and now this, you know, world. press tour, you you all seem still so. humble. and still, you know, have your feet on. the ground about all of this. What keeps. you not leaning into the you know, the. the egoness of all of this? Four daughters. Four daughters. >> [laughter]. >> No, I love it. I just happened my first.

mission I landed and my oldest daughter. graduated from high school 3 weeks. later. And this mission it was about a. month my youngest daughter graduates. from high school and. that is actually very helpful to to be. able to come back and try to just. reintegrate back into my life. And I. think that's. >> I mean, it's hard it's hard when you go. on a business trip. So, I'm sure it's. really challenging. >> It it requires intentionality. I I you. know, I and I think it depends on where.

your life was when you launched and you. know, my first time I launched it was 6. months later and this time it was 10. days and I hope I didn't leave the. garage door open. And so, it's it's. different, but it requires. intentionality and I. I knew that because I got to practice it. before in the military and on my first. mission, but it still different. My kids. are 5 years they're all adults now. They're 5 years older than the last. time. And so, that has been a very. helpful perspective. but also that that trust. >> do entering the space? I remember, you.

know, a friend who was an actor who was. saying if he's going away on a 6-month. trip and you come back it the space is. different. The team changed. Yeah. And so, you have to enter that space not. as a person who left, but you have to. enter the the new space. So, what what. what changes for you when you're. re-entering? At the end of that very long comment, I'm also going to say that to not be do. not feel the room. My kids have personalities. My wife has. a personality. They want to share. They. want to They want to be listened to and.

and America trusted us to do this. The. world trusted us to do this. Canada. trusted us to do this. And it's not just. for us to tell the story. It's to to. listen to people. My church asked me to. talk about the mission. And in listening. to people talk at church, I was like, okay, I agree to do it if it can be a. community discussion. If we can all I've. heard things from each of them that I. had had heard before and I was gone. Just like watching the video. So, it's to not to not fill the room. It's. easy not to lean into it because there's. so much that everybody else has.

>> And and also everybody wants to hear. from you. Yes. Everybody wants to hear. >> just one piece. That's just one piece. Jeremy, how would you answer that. question? Reentering the space with your. wife and family. Um well, very warmly. Um like really. supported. I felt really supported. leading up to the launch. Um because. that's a very stressful time. And I just. thought maybe the cracks would start to. show in a in the family unit, but we. really leaned in together. Um I really We had two conferences with.

our families when we were in space, and. those just felt so warm and positive. And so coming back, yes, things have changed, but the things. that I'm craving are the ones that. stayed the same. And I I feel like they. have a sense of that. And we're just. when we're together, it's just the way. it always was. >> How did you all talk to your families. about the risks involved? Because, you. know, as you all were reentering, uh. all of us are holding our breaths, and. we're watching that that. fire rocket ship come come down, and.

we're all having a collective universal. prayer that it's going to going to be. okay. And I can imagine what that is. like for your families taking off and. and and and landing. So, did you have. the discussion before? Did you have the. discussion with your daughters? 100%. And you have They don't want to hear the. discussion. At least that was my. perception. But you have to have it. You. have to hit it head-on. Do you actually. say the words if I don't come back or if. something happens? >> read through the will. We read through. the trust. If I don't come back, here's.

where you're going to go. Here's where. your guardians will be. Here's where you. will spend your your Christmas, your. holidays. Here's where you'll spend your. summers. And uh what I found in that, although it's difficult, there's. probably two things I want to say. The. first I want to say is I felt like it. was liberating for them. I felt like it. gave them space to just accept that this. is a possibility. And then not many. people have these conversations with. their families. Period. >> But life is risky, even if you're not. climbing on an 8 million-pound rocket.

and going around the moon. And I think. these conversations are very healthy. And another thing that this this. conversation helped me with, but then. also my crew has helped me with is there. are a lot of things that you want to shy. away from. And you those build up in. your soul. You can feel them building up. when you shy away from a conversation. that you should be having. And I'm not. perfect. I shy away from They know I shy. away from just about every tough. conversation cuz it's hard for me. But I. have found every time you have those. conversations, even if they don't go. well, you come out the other side just. your soul is a little bit freer. That's.

something I'm still That's part of my. journey at 50 years old is to still work. my way through that. But don't avoid You. You have to You have to talk about those. things. >> Yeah. Did you Christina? I did. I had. those conversations with my husband. And. I He knew I was working on a will. He. was aware of the risks. And we I sort of waited, I would say, till the mission was very salient, till. we were in quarantine. And I knew that he knew that I was going.

on a journey that I understood the risks. of and that it was a fulfillment of my. life's work and all of my dreams and. that that would bring him peace if I. didn't come back. Mhm. But what I realized I needed him to. know was that none of that. was what. meant the most to me and why he should. actually have peace. It was because. he loved me and I loved him. And that's why it would be okay. I'm struggling with a short answer to.

this because it is such a a profound. thing to try to walk through. I think the characteristic that stands. out the most is I had this conversation. the very first time at at about 28 years. old getting ready to go into combat. And. so five deployments and a space mission, my kid my life and my family my wife, we've all changed. And this last time. my kids were all adults. And so this was a a very different the. most different conversation. And I felt.

like I needed to respect their. adulthood. And it just was an honest. conversation. And at the end of it I. felt it was very heavy. I mean not. everybody is having these types of. conversations, but it's important. And. >> Did you do it one-on-one or did you do. it as a group? A little bit of both. I've got four very different daughters. and you know different needs there. And. so I a little bit of both. And and then. at the end I just I I had to send them a. poem. I need I was like I. I don't know. I don't know how I ended. that. And so I sent them this poem and.

Chief Tecumseh it's a it's a really just. well-written very dense. I I love it. It's a way to live your. life, but in Indian it talks about if. you go out, you know, sing your song and. and go out in a blaze of glory. And it. just it's a very. rich poem. And so I sent that to them. And they all appreciated it I think. And. so it it helped to end it a little a. little on a little more positive note. And you sent that to us before we. launched, too. Yes. I sent I also sent. it to the You sent them the poem? I sent. it to the crew about two two days or one.

day before launch. >> I guess it was I should have sent it a. little earlier. >> [laughter]. >> It's a great poem. We were having a discussion of the crew. as a crew about like what if we end up. in that situation where we are still. alive, but we don't think we're coming. back. Um how are we going to how are we. going to show up for each other? How are. we going to handle it? And it was on the. heels of that. >> that conversation? >> We did. His suggestion. We did. Great. conversation. So on the heels of that. conversation he sent us that poem. And. I'm like yep, that's perfect. >> Okay, so how'd you bring that up?

Jeremy. Uh just like you bring up things. here. Just like. >> [laughter]. >> sit around and ask. I will say that. conversation I remember so well because. you did. You brought it up in the. perfect Jeremy way of just and and what. we had established as a crew is that if. we knew we were in that situation we. would handle it with grace and honor and. almost a solemnness. But I will say. that is beautiful, but there was a. moment on the mission where it did not. serve me because on re-entry I was.

misunderstanding some of Victor's calls. and I thought he was calling our G loads. way higher than they should have been. And I thought, well he's not freaking. out, so we're probably fine. And then I. thought, but wait, we said we wouldn't. freak out. >> [laughter]. >> So I don't actually know. No way. And wasn't there a time where you woke. up in the middle of the night and there. was some alarm going off? >> Wasn't there? >> Every night of the mission. >> Every night except one. >> nights. Really?

>> Yes. It's disorienting. And when that alarm. goes off, there was something with the. fuel. We had an alarm, it's got a run box, a. run box caution, and what that could. potentially mean is that you're leaking. your fuel out of the spacecraft, and. that's not a great situation for us. And. we did, we had a run box alarm at 2:00. in the morning. Very disoriented. Well, time is weird up there, so is it. cuz we run off of a different clock, but. it was in the middle of sleep and I woke. up very disoriented. I I slept. underneath the displays, Victor was. right to my left. And um He just told.

>> up and looked, I was like, I think. that's a run box. And Jeremy actually. comes around cuz he was like, "Oh, run. box, we have to we have to shut down the. fuel system." So Jeremy came around the. side of the display and and started. Maybe you weren't sleeping there yet. >> It was Jeremy that day. >> Jeremy, yeah. And Jeremy came around. very and we were all very disoriented, it's the middle of the night, and Jeremy. started executing the procedures, and. then we just we have a rule in our in. our crew, no fast hands. Like don't go. fast if you can stand it. And so I was. looking at the displays and looking at. the fuel system and we were waiting for. ground to call and Jeremy was starting. to configure and I I said, "Hey, let's.

stop.". At least in my mind, that's how it went. And uh let's just let's just pause for a. second because these indications I see. are not they're not aligning with this. the level the extreme level of this. caution. And that created some tension. in the crew for a moment because we have. very explicit instructions. You save the. fuel system there because you could be. leaking your fuel into the vacuum of. space and that is deadly. And but we did we did stop and we all. talked about it for a few seconds and we. worked our way out of that. And we we. did have a very small leak which caused. that caution, but it it was not a grave.

situation we just needed to monitor it. for a for a little while. So, you all are trained to stay calm, right? Well, we like to think so. You like to. think like to think so. I don't wake up. to an alarm and haven't even in the days. of the Oprah show where I had to get up. at 5:30 every morning cuz the alarm. alarms me and I don't want to start my. day being alarmed. So, if I were to hear. a if I had an alarm in the middle of the. night, it's just like, you know, when. people had real phones and the if the. phone rings in the middle of night 3:00. a.m., you know it's a problem and you're. alarmed. So, when you heard the alarms,

does that does your heart immediately. start palpitating or you like. Probably individual. There's some of. these crew members have ice in their. veins, but yes, I it it gets your. attention quick. Let's talk about some. again some of the logistics because I. hear that those orange suits. are built to keep you alive for 6 days. Oh. For 6 days and so, what's in those. suits? >> [laughter]. >> That you can poop in the suits, you can. do everything you need to do and then.

you can poop in the suits. You can do. whatever you need to do in the suits. Yes, absolutely. Some of the Eat and. drink and everything is in the suits. >> Yes, they have a they have a plan for. that. And we practice with those systems both. on the ground and we did what's called a. flight test objective to test them out. in space to see how they worked in. microgravity. and it would not be a fun 6 days, but. the idea is it would be survivable if. you use the equipment that's provided or.

for eating and drinking, there's a port. actually in the side of the helmet and. you can put a straw in and we have these. very special nutrition drinks. >> think it's this actual straw. >> [laughter]. >> Turns out it is. I picked up the exact. same but I picked up this glass I was. like, "Oh, this is the oxygen mask.". >> you to I wanted you to feel familiar. here. Uh, so there's no running water in. space, obviously, in the capsule and so. you can't take a shower or you you can't. bathe in space. So, so how does that. work? You.

uh have towels that have soap already in. them. and uh you know, I. we don't have hot water. Our our water. is ambient, so depending on the attitude. of the spacecraft. >> Is it called a chamois back? >> Yes. Yes. I didn't know that this was. being broadcast, but [laughter] but I'm. but I'm glad it is because I think, you. know, you seeing the process, seeing the. the daily things. I mean, hey, I got to. wash the toes. >> between those toes? Yeah. >> that too. That's the most important part. of the internet. [laughter] So. And and that's an important part of it. The other thing you see in this, my.

favorite thing about this is something. we've been trying to share. Everything. is a group activity. I mean, you know, Jeremy's eating and cleaning his spoon. and I'm cleaning my body right there. You probably wouldn't do those two. things in the same room. >> Yes. >> Let alone that close to each other at. home, but that we only had one room. And. so you you use that towel and what we. were able to do is put it in the food. warmer. We put it in the food warmer to. warm it up so you could do a you know, a. hot bath. >> Oh, a hot. >> chamois. Uh, yes. >> A hot chamois. And I understand that you. were the space plumber, Christina. Yes.

>> How did you get that job? >> Well, actually, it's just my seat. My. seat, I was in charge of two main things. and it was just cuz of where I was. sitting. I was sitting next to the hatch. and I was sitting next to the toilet, so. I got to set up the toilet as first as. soon as we got to orbit. Wow. So, I was talking earlier about in. in the preparation, you train not to. panic. How do you train not to panic? May- maybe actually. >> So, do they put you in situations that. you normally your body normally would. panic? You know, I was I was um.

doing some hiking um this past summer. and I got onto a cliff that I shouldn't. have been on. My body automatically. started to shake. I thought I was calm, but my knees started knocking together. and my body started to shake and I and I. couldn't stop myself from shaking. So, how do you stop yourself from panicking. when everything in your body says, "I. should be scared right now." You know, Reed Reed was being very complimentary. saying, you know, some of us may have. ice in our veins, but I don't think any.

of us do. We're all humans and we all. have we're the people that that came. into this. But, one of the benefits of. training is you get a chance to practice. doing things when the alarms go off and. I I love this idea. I borrowed it from. someone and. doing the next right thing. You may have. a hundred things to do, but you need to. just be in good enough. to do the next right thing. And I. specifically say this a lot about public. speaking. That's something that kind of. universally makes people nervous. Yeah. And I like to get up on stage and tell. people to look closely at my hand. It's. shaking, but I've learned to work.

through that. I can give a speech while. nervous. It It actually helps me speak. better now, but it's not that we don't. get nervous. We just know how to work. through or with that to still do the. right thing. I I want to add one thing. to that. The day before we launch, you. get to see some of your extended family. through the through this quarantine. facility. So, you can actually talk to. them just on the phone and my dad and my. brother were there and I inadvertently. made my dad tear up and it was because I. said, "You know, Dad." My dad was very. worried about the risk of the mission. I.

said, "Dad, look, I got two amazing. kids. I'm 50 years old. I got an amazing life. I am so at peace right now. When we. launched, I have never felt peace in my. life like that. Never. And I think that. played a huge factor in it. I was going. into space. with three great people and I just felt. we were all at peace. We were all so. comfortable with where we were and it. helped. I was much more frightened on my. first mission to the International Space. Station 10 years earlier because my life.

wasn't in that state of peace. And now I. was there and I think that had a hugely. foundational part. >> Would you all say the same thing? Definitely. Yeah. You were at peace? 100%. Yeah. I think that's what we're. all feeling. There's something about the. four of you that has connected and. going to try not to cry that has. connected. in such a way that is you went all the. way out there farther than any human.

beings ever ever traveled before to. remind us of who we are. And so what you. brought back to us was not just what was. out there, but you brought back to us a. sense of ourselves. And you can only do. that when you have that together. yourself. So true. Yeah. Thank you. Yeah. What you just said is the best gift you. could ever give us because that is all. we ever wanted. Yeah. And you all did that. We didn't do that. No, I think you you all actually played.

a part. It's the It's the synergy. It's. the It's like uh. the symbiotic relationship here. But it feels like something really. genuine. and it's so genuine that that's that's. why we are moved by it. And that point. where you all had absolutely zero. contact. with mission control. Houston copies. We'll see on the other side. Was that scary? Or was that calming? For 40 minutes. Jeremy, what do you think? It was not.

scary for us because you know, we we. trust in science. We knew we were going. to come out the other side and to be out. of contact was not a big deal. >> second where you saying, "I hope this. works." Yeah. I know. >> really scary, but we but the one thing. it was significant. Like it was. significant to be in that spot with. these three people. And it was obvious. to me that we all looked at each other. in that moment. And we thought, wow, this is a really unique human. experience. You know, one of the other. things I didn't say earlier that I. should have added to the diorama comment.

about like just seeing the. juxtaposition, but it made me feel. really tiny and insignificant. And so. did being on the far side of the moon. with you guys. But it also at the same. time made me feel extremely powerful. that we were there as a human species. Like powerful as a collective. And that. that's kind of sums up that feeling of. being in the far side of the moon. Hm, I think that's interesting. Representing the human species. Not just Canada, not just the United. States, but representing the human. species. And I read that you said this,

Victor, you said this, I took a brief. moment to say a short prayer of. gratitude for being sent on this. mission. And I was really hoping that. while we were waiting to get back into. contact, that people could just feel. that sense of togetherness, that we were. all a crew on spaceship Earth. You know, you asked about what was it a. scary moment? Not for our physical. well-being or getting back in contact. We the gravity assist around was going. to work and and and we had simmed that.

The thing I would say I was the most. worried about was that we might miss the. opportunity to just be connected for a. moment and and to have a a human moment. A moment. You know, when we have when we. have a when we lose someone, we have a. moment of silence to out of respect. >> yeah. >> Well, we were going into radio silence. And so I love this idea of a moment of. togetherness. It just seemed like we had. a chance to be together, do the same. thing as humans for the same moment. And. I was worried that that wouldn't, you. know, break through the noise floor of.

all the things going on online and on TV. and that was my biggest concern. But we. didn't have time to be worried because. we were busy doing we were closest to. the moon and farthest from the earth. right around that time. And so we had to. we were Christina and I were making. observations looking out of the windows. and recording them on our computers. And. I actually meant to say my prayer and. then go to the recording, but I was in. the middle of a science recording. [laughter] when I said my prayer and so. I you know the science team gets to. listen to this this recording in.

[laughter] the middle of of that. observation. Sorry, I'm a little. distracted in this moment. I'm just. going to do it on the recording. It's. our heavenly father. Thank you for this opportunity. All. glory to you. Just ask you to continue. to be with us. We have a lot of mission. ahead of us. God bless us. In Jesus' name. Amen. It It was also very busy. You know, we. were working and we we took a a minute. to have a human moment and we went right. back to work and and we picked up. communications little over 40 minutes.

later. Let's talk about Jeremy that. re-entry. What's it like, you know, feeling like you're buckled in and. you're falling back to earth? Are you. Are you just praying that all those. parachutes are going to open? >> [laughter]. >> I know we were. Yeah, I think it's a I. feel like it's a lot easier to be in the. capsule than than to be on the ground. watching it. You're just It's like Reed. was talking about like I Well, I think. we had all made peace with what we were. going to experience on this journey and. we I believed I think we all did. Like I. was optimistic. I believed we were going.

to come back most likely. I wasn't sure. of it, but I was pretty confident we. would most likely come back. And so I. was just trying to enjoy the experience. and it's really a quite a incredible. experience. Like all the things and. feels of that. Like the first thing you. see is this red plasma building at the. window and then it became like this. green and blue and it was flashing like. somebody was out there welding. It was. so bright it hurt to look at it. I put. my dark visor down. The G forces are. just squeezing you into the seat. You. haven't been in in gravity in a while. And then eventually the drogue come out.

and it it's shaking you around. It's all. violence and then it drops you again as. they detach and then the mains come out. and then Christina and I were sitting. beside each other. So when the mains. came out we were like, "Yes.". >> Yeah. Yeah. And is that the moment that you feel. relieved? Mhm. When the when the shoots. Really was because from that moment on. there's still things that can happen. You can still have like. dangerous gases come in the vehicle and. all these things we trained for but we. had a plan for all of them. That was the. first time where I felt like whatever. the capsule throws at us right now, I. think we can survive it. Prior to that.

you're like there's some things I know. we just can't. You can't. You can't. So. who opened the hatch? Our Navy dive team. >> [laughter]. >> Yeah. United States Navy. THAT'S RIGHT. YOU ALL WERE IN THAT WATER A LONG TIME. >> [laughter]. >> You guys were I'm like. We're having a blast in there waiting. We're like, "What are they doing in. there? Will they open the hatch?". We were having a great time. What were. you doing [laughter] What were you doing.

in there? Being happy to be alive. Yes. Yes. Just enjoying our last few minutes. in integrity. with each other. We'd all gotten out of. our seats. We were still in the orange. suits but we were all out of our seats. kind of leaning back against the side of. the spacecraft and waiting for the teams. to get there. Christina had some peanut. M&M's in her pocket that contraband from. the from the moon and we ate that and it. was just like a really nice crew moment. and you could tell like looking back at. some of the videos of us in there. We. all had adrenaline. We were chatty. We.

were really really chatty waiting for. the rescue team to come get us. Yes. And. and and and by that time are you are you. anxious or you or is it just a feeling. of relief? Total peace. Total peace. >> Yeah and I would say more gratitude. Like a little bit of disbelief and just. gratitude. Uh not relief. I don't remember feeling. relief but just like, "Wow. We just flew. around the moon and we're back in the. Pacific Ocean and all these people are. actually here. We're in the right spot. >> Yeah, exactly. [laughter]. They were waiting for us in that planet.

that we were looking at 3 days ago. We're now. on it. Tiny Earth ain't so tiny anymore. >> ain't so tiny anymore. So, Reed, your. daughter Katie posted a beautiful I. mentioned earlier this welcome home. message on Instagram and she I'm going. to read part of it. She says, "Watching. the Artemis 2 rocket lift off the pad. was a feeling I will never be able to. describe to a single soul on this. planet. Watching my own dad risking it. all for the benefit of humanity was such.

a beautiful yet achingly painful. To have a crater named after my mother. was completely unreal. She was the. funniest, most kind, and beautiful mom. on this Earth and will now not just be. part of history but etched into the moon. itself for all of eternity. To look up. at the sky every night and see her is. the most beautiful thing I've ever been. given. How does a 17-year-old come up with. that? I mean, that was. That was absolutely amazing. One of the. I was going to talk about this a little.

while ago, but I'll just talk about it. right now. We have talked a lot about shared. experience, but we all have unique. experiences. If you crack us open, we. all feel a little differently about this. and we all have moments that were very, very special to us. And. I think a couple of those moments when. you first talked to Bob and and you were. like, "Guys, it's pretty crazy down there." Like, a. lot of people were paying attention and. we were like, "Oh, yeah, yeah, whatever." But on flight day seven, I. got to talk to my kids and.

that was when. I saw in them that they understood why I. put them through this. On day seven? On day seven, I could hear. and see that they now understood why. this was important and why this was. worth it and why I needed to go do this. They got it. They fully got it. And that. if you could ever get your daughter to. write something like that about you, it's pretty good. >> It's pretty powerful. >> It absolves you in a lot of ways.

>> So, oh my gosh, you just summed up every. feeling in one word. There's guilt that comes with putting a. lot of risk to chase your dreams, even. if you are doing it for the right. reasons. Selfishness. Yep. And so, your daughters, their reaction? You asked us earlier if there's one. thing that, you know, is a moment or has. changed your perspective. My favorite. thing about. doing these types of things is what it.

does. to to our family members. You know, we. work at NASA and the Canadian Space. Agency and with all of our partners and. it's we're so close to it that it's easy. to think that everybody is as interested. in space exploration as we are. But when your family responds in a way. that surprises you, when when your child. writes something like that or. you know, the things that I I listened. to one of Jeremy's kids talk about, you. know, parents want to see their kids. accomplish their dreams, but seeing your.

parent accomplish their. And I was just like, wow. He's got a. gift in speaking, first of but also but. that's that is just a beautiful thing to. to chew on. And I just love what it my parents, listening to my parents reflect on. the people at my church reflect on this. experience. You know, I don't want to. talk about it. I want to sit and listen. to their experiences of the mission as. well. And so, you know, listening to my. kids celebrate this and my wife. celebrate it has also been an amazing.

part of this journey. Well, I know you didn't have kids, but you. came home to a Sadie. I have a Sadie, too. >> Oh my goodness. [laughter] Yeah. >> was 17. >> really got it. >> Sadie got it. She really understood. Sadie would have gotten it if you just. gone to the grocery store, though. That. is true. And or if that was you at the. door, that would [laughter] be exactly. what she does. And she was extra spazzy this day. Yeah, I wanted some kisses, but she wasn't. having it. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So change. forever. Change forever. And what do you.

want to say to the world now that you've. come back, you're settling in? Um I I would just say choose joy. Um. it's just we have a delivered choice. every day and what we decide to use our. energy for and what we decide decide to. focus on. Just choose joy. Choose joy. Trust, togetherness, gratitude. Thank. you. to the world for trusting us to to do. what we did our role in this mission. And, you know, thinking about that just. the overriding responses, how much.

gratitude that that creates. And uh the one common theme through all. of this in each other, in our heat. shield engineering team, the flight. control, the launch control team, our agencies and our partnership is. trust. It takes trust to go to space. more than it takes rockets and and. rocket engines and parachutes. It takes. trust. And so I just wish we would uh think. about those things, trust, togetherness, and gratitude. Trust, togetherness, and. gratitude, Christina. Well, I hoped I would come up with.

something while you guys were talking, but there's [laughter] there's just so. much. >> said about a crew, that that is. everlasting. That was something that. meant a lot to me that day and I could. definitely say that looking back at. Earth and seeing that it's not. guaranteed. What we have is not given. It's not an. absolute. It's a lifeboat that we share and. if you, like Jeremy says, if you saw. something in us, it can be emulated cuz.

just like we were a spaceship out in the. universe, this planet is a spaceship out. in the universe and that means we are a. crew. Yeah. We got to figure it out. When you all. were out there just saying those. beautiful words, I was saying, "We all. got to figure it out. We've got it.". What you were saying earlier, Victor, "We've got to figure out a way to bring. that perspective that you all saw to. other people so that we figure it out. We stop fighting over the things that.

don't matter and figure out the things. that do and. bring ourselves together. You get the. final words, sir. First on on figuring it out and being. together, I just don't want it to be lost that. differences are are absolutely okay. Yeah. >> And they're very powerful. It's being able to just. accept differences and come. and discuss them and just pull a little. from each difference. Being just open to.

the fact that we can have different. viewpoints and that doesn't mean you're. right and I'm wrong or I'm right and. you're wrong. It like let's talk about. these things. Let's learn from each. other. I think that's the first thing I. would say at at. listening to Oprah, everything you've. said, and. what Christina, Victor, and Jeremy have. said, the only thing that I can possibly. add is I've listened to these birds. chirp the whole time we've been out. here. I've felt a little bit of wind. just coming from the left to right on my. face. And I do think sometimes when you. leave Earth and come back to it, you can. take a minute to appreciate the beauty.

of nature. It's very special and. it should be appreciated every day. Mhm. Thank you. Thank you for reminding us of. ourselves. Thank you, Commander Reid. Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission. specialist Christina Koch and Jeremy. Hansen, and everybody at NASA for making. this interview in my backyard. such an honor, such an honor, such an. honor. Go well, everybody. Wow. >> Thank you. >> [applause]. >> Thank you. Right from MY OWN BACKYARD.

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