Hi friends,
“A bright spot on the moon.”
That's how the NASA crew that captured the heart of the nation described it with heavy voices and tears in their eyes.
If you didn't see a couple of weeks ago, NASA's history-making crew of astronauts that traveled farther away from Earth than any humans have before, pulled on the heartstrings of the entire world when they chose to name one of two newly discovered moon craters after the late wife of mission commander Reid Wiseman. You can watch the clip of the moment here.
Carroll Wiseman was 46 years old when she passed away from cancer in 2020, leaving behind Reid and their two daughters. Now, six years later, Reid had the opportunity to continue honoring her memory in a way that many of us won't ever have the chance to do: flying to the moon and immortalizing her legacy forever.
“Carroll” is now the name of the crater on the far side of the moon.
I was so moved by this act of love, grief, and remembrance. And I was even more touched by the raw emotion that the whole crew showed inside the spacecraft, weeping together, embracing, and poignantly remembering the wife of one of their own.
This is a beautiful depiction of real grief. And real friendship. And what love looks like in real time.
Reid Wiseman showed us that because love never leaves us, grief never does either. Reid is still searching for ways to express his love and loss, even years later. I find comfort and solidarity in this. Do you?
The astronaut crew, Reid's friends, show us the best way we can love those around us who are walking through searing grief: give them the gift of presence.
As we write in our Grief and Loss Kit:
“Sometimes there aren't words, but there's presence. The gift of presence, of bearing what little of their pain you can, is often the only appropriate thing to do.”
So, wherever you find yourself on the spectrum of grief today, whether you're reeling from new loss, or carrying on with longtime grief, or the close friend of someone in the valley of loss, I hope you find comfort and encouragement in this sweet modern story of NASA astronauts showing us all what it looks like to love and grieve, all the way to the moon and back.
With love,
Jen