listed, so that’s what NASA repaid me. “Government meals and quarters furnished for all the above dates,” the voucher states: July 7 through July 27, including the period from July 19 (1325 hours, arrived at Moon) to July 21 (2400 hours, left Moon).
Similarly, Neil Armstrong, Mike Collins, and I had to fill out a U.S. Customs form upon our return from the Moon. My customs declaration form stated “Departure from: Moon. Arrival at: Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A. Cargo, items to declare: Moon rocks, Moon dust samples.” Then in a rather cryptic note, the form included the statement, “Any other condition on board which may lead to the spread of disease? To be determined”—because it was unknown what health impact our adventure on the lunar surface might eventually have on our bodies. Neil, Mike, and I all signed the official declaration document, as did the local customs agent in Hawaii. To me, going to the Moon was merely an extension of the commitment I had made to serve my country years earlier.
When I said the words of the oath at West Point, “Duty, honor, country, and service,” I meant them, and I still embrace them to this day. I made the commitment not simply to enlist for a few years but to serve my country for the rest of my life. And I am proud to have done so. Serving my country has been the greatest honor of my life.
At West Point, I took seriously the high standards by which all cadets promised to live and operate. The academy upheld a simple but strict honor code: “A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do.” Not only were cadets expected to do their own work, never compromising their own integrity, they were also required to report anyone else who might be cheating. The “honor code” at West Point meant that an instructor could literally leave a room while administering a test and expect that the cadets would not share answers, copy someone else’s paper, or do anything that might skew the results. The honor code, although adhered to and administered by the commandant of the academy as well as the superintendent of the academy, was basically peer enforced, cadets keeping each other accountable.
West Point had such confidence in the willingness of cadets to adhere to the honor code, the academy had set up an almost irresistible temptation—dividing the corps of cadets into two regiments, meeting on two separate days, with both taking identical classes and receiving identical tests. For instance, one class might take a test on Monday, and the other received that same test on Wednesday; in the meantime, the cadets were expected not to discuss the contents of the exam, much less the answers to questions. That usually worked well, but in situations where members of the two regiments mixed, especially on the athletic teams, inevitably the temptation to ask, “What was on the test?” proved too hard to resist and the program was compromised.
Nowadays, many students are accustomed to asking such questions, and there are entire businesses thriving in America that do nothing other than help students prepare for college entrance exams such as the SAT or ACT. Their method is simple and effective, and the businesses help students improve their scores by reviewing previous tests and practicing for the exam, which will most likely be quite similar.
But at West Point in my day, we were expected to do our own work. We didn’t ask our fellow cadets, “Hey, what was on the test you took yesterday?” That would be breaking the honor code. A cadet accused of violating the honor code could be sanctioned or possibly expelled from the academy, so pointing out an indiscretion by a fellow cadet was always taken seriously. That’s why I faced such a dilemma when I discovered a cadet in my class cheating on an exam.
During an exam my second year at West Point, the instructor left the room. Not surprisingly, the cadets taking the test remained absolutely silent. I was poring over my exam when I momentarily glanced up from my work and noticed one of the most respected cadets at the academy pull out a crib sheet—a piece of paper with answers to the test! I was shocked, but I didn’t say anything to him or anyone else at the time. I finished the exam and exited the room, feeling great consternation. What was I to do? I was certain that I had witnessed a cadet cheating