He had a difficult childhood as well and told you he became interested in astronomy because it made him realize there was something bigger out there. Q: There’s a part of your book that details a conversation you had with a friend. The things that happened in my childhood or in my family - you don’t know that other people have had these same experiences, but I just suspect a lot of people have. That comes, I think, along with my idea that I don’t really like setting up people as heroes or as special. I definitely have a strong feeling that everybody has so much more in common than they have different. I feel emotionally like it’s connected, but I don’t know. Is that caused by what happened to me in my childhood? I don’t know. I’m going to find the next step.” Because being in that situation and feeling trapped by the wrong outcome, I just have this visceral rejection of that. Q: I’m curious about how you see trauma shaping who you are today.Ī: I think what I wrote about a little bit is that when I’m faced with something that I can’t stand the thought of, I’m immediately just like, “How am I going to get past this? This is unacceptable. Maybe it’s the feeling one gets when they read a story that feels familiar, and it’s a connection to humankind. But, yes, seeing how someone else did it can be instructive. Q: Is it your hope in writing about your childhood trauma that it might help others deal with whatever they’re going through?Ī: Yes, but I try not to say it that way because it sounds condescending, like “I did this thing and maybe now you can do it.” Because I think everyone is overcoming their challenges in their own way.
I’m sure it must be true sometimes, but my suspicion is that’s not true, that everyone has had things in their lives they’ve had to overcome.
I think it’s possible that there’s still the notion that people who get to do those things have had a special entitled pathway. I’ve really been able to do some dream projects and work on some dream subjects. Also, I have been really blessed with some lovely things happening on the job front. And I’m hoping that other people will hear that here’s one way somebody dealt with this and compare and contrast with their own process. I think everyone has experienced things like this. But part of it is, I think, these are very common stories. Why did you decide to not only write about those things, but go into the detail you did?Ī: Part of it is, it’s just cathartic for me. Q: You write about some very personal things, including your father’s anger and drinking, your brother being killed by a drunk driver, being raped as a child and your ensuing bouts of depression and anxiety. So, no matter what came next, it was kind of irresistible to give it a try, and frankly, writing it was just a pleasure. What would you think about writing a memoir instead?” And that was just so exciting that somebody thought it would make a good story.
But, Lindy, I love the parts of your story in there. I presented the idea to the agent I’m now working with, and she said, “Well, that’s really interesting, but I’m not totally in love with that book concept. And talking about the kinds of lessons that you take from exploration. Q: When did you de cide to take on the book, and how did you find time to write it?Ī: It must have been three years ago, we were contemplating writing a book about exploration and putting in the unusual stories of exploration as opposed to the ones that we normally kind of get used to, like the heroes of the Golden Age and all that. So, for me, it’s this motivation to try to connect with people, and I just hope that people say, “You know, I feel that, too.” I think that so many people are contemplating or have been along career paths like mine and encountered challenges like what I have, whether that’s gender, age, nationality or whatever. Question: Why did you decide to write the book? It’s not as if you had a lot of extra time on your hands while you’re leading a NASA mission.Īnswer: What I’m really hoping is that people who read the book feel a connection. ASU Regents Professor Lindy Elkins-Tanton is, among other things, the principal investigator of NASA's Psyche mission.
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