The Sea of Tranquility slides under the window of Eagle, the lunar module.
The moon’s surface gets closer, bigger,
and Eagle lands.
We wait
to see a man walk on the moon
for the very first time,
ever.
Mama serves us potato salad and rolled-up ham slices
on TV trays
while we watch the fuzzy black-and-white pictures
from so far away.
She brings me a Coke with ice
so I can stay awake
to see the first man walk on the moon.
But I don’t need caffeine to stay awake tonight.
Papa says, “Remember this night.”
Mama says, “To tell your children,
my grandchildren.”
It’s almost eleven o’clock
and Eagle’s hatch is open.
I stare at the TV
as Mama passes the bowl of popcorn.
Neil Armstrong stands on the ladder,
which he says is sunk one to two inches into the moon’s surface.
Then he steps into the dust
and touches a brand- new world.
He says,
“One small step for man
One giant leap for mankind.”
Papa says, “Those words just traveled around the world.”
Soon, Buzz Aldrin squeezes out of the lunar module
like a person being born all over again,
and the two astronauts hop around
like moon kangaroos.
“It has a stark beauty all its own,” Neil Armstrong says,
“like the high desert of the United States.”
The lunar surface does look beautiful, but
I wonder if he has ever seen
winter in Vermont.