In Admiration of Neil Armstrong

As is widely known, Neil Armstrong was the first man to step on the moon. More notably, it was a monumental achievement unfettered by boastful conceit and flamboyant antics. Your typical pro football player exhibits far more egocentric silliness after scoring a goal or a touchdown than Armstrong ever indulged. The manner in which he conducted himself on Earth is more worthy of admiration than his exploits on the moon. Imagine the millions, if not tens of millions of dollars, he could have made by peddling underarm deodorants, energy drinks and, needless to say, walking shoes. Instead, Armstrong preferred to “bask in obscurity”. He was too proud of himself as a man to be caricatured as a celebrity. He chose to live his life on a farm in Ohio sharing his hard-earned knowledge and experiences with students at the University of Cincinnati. Beyond that, Armstrong devoted himself to being a good husband to his wife and a good father to his children. Few men ever have or ever will walk on the moon but, we all could do better to walk upon the Earth with the quiet dignity and genuine humility of Neil Armstrong.