“So remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious. And however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. It matters that you don’t just give up. Unleash your imagination. Shape the future.”
Other than Lou Gehrig himself, Stephen Hawking is probably the most famous person to have had ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.) He passed away almost exactly one year after my father, in 2018. The difference is he miraculously lived with ALS for 54 years and my father only survived it about a year and a half after being diagnosed.
When I heard the news about Mr. Hawking it definitely made me think about my father. Dad only made it to age 67. I often wish that I could give him a call and ask him questions when I am struggling with different things in my life. He worked for the Veterans Administration as a programmer for almost 50 years and most of his efforts were in service of veterans. He was one himself, having served in Vietnam.
Stephen Hawking unquestionably contributed a great deal to science and was a role model and inspiration for persons with disabilities. The last book that he wrote, Brief Answers To The Big Questions, turned out to be very understandable and enlightening. He covers a lot of subjects. God, extraterrestrials, black holes, time travel, artificial intelligence, and more. I highly recommend it if you have an interest in hearing a unique perspective on these subjects from the mind of a true genius.
“One of the great revelations of the space age has been the perspective it has given humanity on ourselves. When we see the Earth from space, we see ourselves as a whole. We see the unity and not the divisions. It is such a simple image with a compelling message; one planet, one human race.”
“Let us fight for every woman and every man to have the opportunity to live healthy, secure lives, full of opportunity and love. We are all time travellers, journeying together into the future. But let us work together to make that future a place we want to visit. Be brave, be curious, be determined, overcome the odds. It can be done.”
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