No Dream Is Too High - Buzz Aldrin Page 0,39
me?” I feigned shock.
Christina rolled her eyes and headed to the restroom. She had no sooner walked away when another young woman approached and sat down in the seat next to me. I guessed her to be around 19 years of age, and she sported bloodred dreadlocks in her hair and piercings all over her head and body, and carried several brightly colored translucent Hula-Hoops that seemed to have lights inside them.
She didn’t seem to recognize me, and she looked rather ratty in her appearance, but I was fascinated by her Hula-Hoops, so I struck up a conversation with her. “Why are you carrying those hoops?” I asked.
“Oh, I’m a performance artist and I use them in my show. They light up as I move.”
“They light up?” She had my full attention.
“Yeah, watch,” she offered. “I’ll show you.” She swung several of the hoops around her waist and arms and began to move her hips. The hoops swirled around her and lit up like a Christmas tree. I was impressed.
She sat back down and we talked further. She told me that she was on her way to Australia to attend school.
“Are you going to do any scuba diving while you are there?” I asked.
“Oh, I’d love to scuba dive in Australia,” she said.
I knew I had found a kindred spirit, regardless of her unusual looks and occupation. In my peripheral vision, I noticed several onlookers scowling at us incredulously, as though saying, “What is he doing talking to her?”
I didn’t care. She was an interesting person and I’m always interested in interesting people.
Christina returned, and I introduced her to the dreadlocked young woman. “And look,” I said, “she has Hula-Hoops!”
“Uh-huh,” Christina responded cautiously. “Hula-Hoops?”
“Yes, and they light up!”
“I see,” Christina said. “We’ll be boarding soon, Buzz.” She smiled at the strange-looking young woman and sat down across from us, while the red-dreads girl and I continued our conversation. Christina seemed to be working on her phone, occasionally pointing it in my direction.
Before long, it was time for the first-class passengers to board, so we said goodbye to the young woman. Upon entering the airplane, as is my usual practice, I stopped to chat with the pilots, greeting them as one pilot to another, asking them questions and engaging them in conversation about flying. Christina went on to our seats.
The young woman with the red dreads was one of the last passengers to get on the plane. As the young woman passed by our seats in first class, on her way to coach seating, Christina stopped her. “I took a few pictures of you and Buzz,” she said. “Would you mind if I send them out on Twitter?”
“I’m not on Twitter,” the red-dreads woman said, “but I don’t care. Send whatever you want.”
“Okay, the pictures will be on our website. Do you know who he is?”
“I don’t know; he said his name is Buzz.”
“Yes, that’s right,” Christina said. “Buzz Aldrin, as in Buzz Aldrin of Apollo 11, the guy who walked on the Moon.”
“Holy crap,” the girl blurted.
“Do you have any idea how lucky you are to be able to talk to Buzz Aldrin for so long?” one of her fellow passengers asked. She had no idea. Nor did she care. And nor did I.
By then, everyone in first class was listening to their conversation—and they began applauding.
I TRY TO TREAT EVERY PERSON WITH DIGNITY and respect, whether that person is the president of the United States—all of whom I have met since Richard Nixon—or Queen Elizabeth of England or a waitress at a local restaurant. In fact, you can tell a lot about another person you are considering as a business partner or a marriage partner simply by observing the way that person treats an individual who is serving them. When people are rude or inconsiderate or treat waitstaff as inanimate robots that exist and function merely for their convenience, service, or pleasure, you can be sure those people will eventually treat your customers or you in a similar manner at some point.
I try to treat a janitor with the same respect I give to the CEO of a company. Why? Because every human being deserves our respect and deserves to be treated with dignity.
Treating children with respect is also a big deal to me. Part of the reason I respect kids’ curiosity so much is because I was a curious and adventurous child myself. During my early childhood, my family lived in a large house in Montclair, New Jersey,