一步到不了太空，勇气也不是一天练成的

我以前很怕坐过山车，也并没有那么喜欢重力加速度，曾经去了号称欧洲最大的过山车－蓝色旋风，然后一不小心被朋友们裹挟排进队里，然后经历了“噩梦般”的十几分钟。 当我读这本书的时候，发现人要在7倍马赫数的速度下乘着飞行器升空快速加速的时候简直无法想象。

作者是名宇航员，书里两条主线交错。 A person’s life and growth 一条主线讲他一路走来，渐渐从一个不爱学习，也没有什么人生目标的问题儿童，然后参加海军，做到航空母舰的pilot, test pilot, 最后成为一名宇航员的各种经历。

他是个非常自省的人，阅读的过程中，常常感觉跟他在一起经历他的那些个迷茫，拼搏努力，失败犯错，思考反思的种种心路历程。让我意识到，虽然人的性格天生有差别，对于刺激的接受程度各不相同，但是勇气真的不是一天练成的，凡事都有个incremental change的过程。而似乎我也时常会忘记这个道理，不是简单的所谓的水滴石穿的道理，而是在非线性的成长道路上的偶然的历练尝试(毕竟一个人要忙的事情太多了), 这这种非线性的历练之下，自己真的会变得越来越强大，内心也会越来越宽广，梦想也在随着自己的成长而渐渐长大。我想年少的作者也从未曾想象自己有一天会和其他7个人，在宇宙中看着地球上的万家灯火（真的可以看到哦），度过新年吧。我想，那是种怎样的视角和感受。

他讲他的妈妈本来是个普通的文职秘书，有一天决定要去做女警察，经过努力之后称为当地的第一位女警察的故事。

She became one of very few women to pass the test, and that made a big impression on Mark and me: she had decided on a goal that seemed like it might not be possible, and she had achieved it through sheer force of determination and the support of people around her. I still hadn’t found a goal for myself that would give me that same kind of drive, but I had at least seen what that would look like.

A year’s life in space 另一条线讲他的一次航空任务，在国际空间站生活一年的点滴。从升空前的准备开始，到飞行器和空间站的对接，在空间站的日常事务（和地面团队的沟通），space walk， 遇到的危机，科学实验等等。这一部分特别的长知识，而且很有意思，有很多以前自己根本不知道的事情。比如说，宇航员在zero gravity 的时候，其实不仅仅是表象看到的那样漂浮行走，其实血液器官全部都是失重状态，血液循环也会不畅，身体机能会比平时下降很多，骨质疏松的问题也很严重，才不是看起来那么轻轻松松飞来飞去的样子，对宇航员的寿命和身体健康都会造成影响。

除了他在空间站的生活和科普，他也讲自己在那儿的心理状态，和自己家人的关系，对遥远地球的观察，人类的思考，美国和俄罗斯宇航员的文化差异，以及与其它宇航员跨越国界，在地球之外相互依赖和信任的共同情感。

他说一年的space life,让他对地球有种深深乡愁，他想念那个有四季，有花鸟虫鱼，生机勃勃的世界。很好笑的是，他们在space里常听一些有关于自然声音的recordings,有个意大利同事 "even has a recording of mosquitos, which I think is a bit too far. "(哈哈）

在书的尾声，他总结了自己one year in space life。

About himself:

I’ve learned that I can be really calm in bad situations. I’ve known this about myself since I was a kid, but it has definitely been reinforced.

I’ve learned to better compartmentalize, which doesn’t mean forgetting about feelings but instead means focusing on the things I can control and ignoring what I can’t.

I’ve learned from watching my mother train to become a police officer that small steps add up to giant leaps.

I’ve learned that most problems aren’t rocket science, but when they are rocket science, you should ask a rocket scientist. In other words, I don’t know everything, so I’ve learned to seek advice and counsel and to listen to experts. I’ve learned that an achievement that seems to have been accomplished by one person probably has hundreds, maybe even thousands, of people’s minds and work behind it, and I’ve learned that it’s a privilege to be the embodiment of that work.

About taking risks:

I’ve learned that climbing into a rocket that may kill me is both a confrontation of mortality and an adventure that makes me feel more alive than anything else I’ve ever experienced.

About human relationship:

I’ve learned a new empathy for other people, including people I don’t know and people I disagree with. I’ve started letting people know I appreciate them, which can sometimes freak them out at first. It’s a bit out of character. But it’s something I’m glad to have gained and hope to keep.

About his contribution and meaning of work:

For me, it’s worth it to have contributed to advancing human knowledge, even if it’s only a step on a much longer journey.

About space and human’s triumph :

In a world of compromise and uncertainty, this space station is a triumph of engineering and cooperation. Putting it into orbit—making it work and keeping it working—is the hardest thing that human beings have ever done, and it stands as proof that when we set our minds to something hard, when we work together, we can do anything, including solving our problems here on Earth.

For me, I’ve learned an amazing story from his adventure in space and his knowledge out of the book. 很多看起来没有那么有意思的科学实验是如此的意义非凡。通过这本书，了解了他的故事，不一样的生活，平凡人了解自己寻找一个目标的过程，同时通过他的视角去了解人类探索宇宙的共同努力，以及对地球的多样性和生命的欣赏，and don’t take everything you have now for granted.

曾经和同事们讨论Elon Musk的火星计划，发现那个让不少人趋之若鹜的是趟有去无回的旅程。虽然觉得是每个人对自己生活方式和期待不同，也觉得是他们的个人选择。读过这本书之后，我好像更能理解人们对于宇宙的渴望了。