If, when I was 21, someone had asked me to write a film script for the life I wanted, it would’ve gone like this: fighter pilot, test pilot, astronaut. Happy marriage, healthy kids, interesting experiences. My life has followed that script, but there were so many “ifs” that could have changed the plot: if, for instance, I hadn’t seen the CSA’s newspaper ad soliciting applications—which could well have happened, since we were living in the U.S. at the time. However, I never thought, “If I don’t make it as an astronaut, I’m a failure.” The script would have changed a lot if, instead, I’d moved
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