Merry Christmas from the Moon

My Christmas present to you is the firmly held belief that you can do anything you set your mind to, that anything is possible, and that you are a beautiful, intelligent person who deserves kindness and respect from everyone.  Take a look at this picture of the Apollo 8 crew from 1968

And now take a look at the heroic crew of the Columbia Space Shuttle. 

Notice a difference?    Well, for one thing there are only three people in the Apollo 8 crew, but there are seven in the Columbia crew.  Why?  Major advances in technology from the 1960's to the 21st century.  But, it wasn't just technology which advanced.  In the Columbia crew, there are two women (one of whom was from India), one African American, and one Israeli.  How awesome is that?  Freakin' awesome.
.
A couple of decades ago when I was the same age as my Young Adult readership, I dared to dream of having a close, loving family of my own, after growing up in a broken home.  Now, I have a husband who still thinks I'm cute and funny and and four beautiful children who never go hungry, get cold, or wear rags.  You can live happily ever after too, if only you believe it's possible and then set about making it happen.  Here's a great song to inspire you-
The Original Into to Enterprise
And here's the original Christmas broadcast from the Moon from the Apollo 8 crew-
Apollo 8's Christmas Message 1968
.
Merry Christmas!