Jim had seen it all before. As he stared out the portal of the spacecraft at the moon, he remembered the last time he was here. It was Christmas Eve, and he and his crew were in lunar orbit, broadcasting a holiday greeting back to the inhabitants of planet Earth. He remembered looking out at the moon’s surface and seeing the long shadows that the sunrise was casting across its features. It felt as if he could reach out and touch it. He was ready to tread where no one had gone before.
Jim Lovell passed away last week at the age of 97. He was a true pioneer—first to orbit the moon with his crew, and famously the commander of Apollo 13. He dreamed of walking on the moon, and the Apollo 13 mission was meant to make that possible. But as we all know, things didn’t go according to plan. Instead, the mission became a story of crisis: a mid-flight disaster that threatened the lives of the crew. Jim’s quick thinking, together with his crew’s steadfast work, turned near-certain tragedy into an extraordinary story of survival and teamwork. The world watched with bated breath, and there was collective relief and joy when the crew returned safely to Earth.
Jim never set foot on the moon. But he became an inspiration for how to tackle the unexpected. “You can’t suddenly have a problem, and then just, you know, close your eyes and then hope there’s a miracle coming on, because a miracle is something you have to do yourself, or have people to help you.”
It’s easy to see our “moon shot” as our only objective, the sole definition of success. But life has a way of surprising us and changing our plans. When things don’t go as expected, those moments become the true test of our character. They can be the very moments that define us—not by whether we reached the goal we set, but by how we faced the unexpected. It isn’t just about accomplishing the mission, however important that may be, but about how we react and support each other along the way.
As we take on new challenges this week, let’s remember Jim’s example: don’t lose heart when the mission changes. Instead, do something—make a difference. Help someone else. Be the miracle. The measure of success isn’t the destination, but how we respond when the path shifts beneath our feet. Even when you are 234 thousand miles from home.
When we first saw her, she was standing at the gate of the animal rescue, looking longingly in our direction. Her red Cocker Spaniel face was whitened with age. Her curly fur coat had been shaved off to relieve the matting that had formed over many years of neglect and weeks on the street. She was an older dog, but her dark, penetrating eyes longed to tell us her story.
Having pets was typically not in the cards for us. Allergies, asthma, and other caregiving responsibilities had steered us away from welcoming an animal into our home. But my girls had slowly convinced Mom and Dad that it was finally time to get a hypoallergenic pup. Their search had led them to Jake, a young male poodle mix at a local rescue shelter. We went to see him. But we quickly learned that Jake had issues from his past that would require isolation and a lot of training. The astute rescue worker suggested we consider an older dog for our first pet. He pointed over at Elizabeth (or Lilibet, as my wife would soon call her), and said, “What about this one?” She sensed our attention and even barked in our direction. He brought her over to us.
She wasn’t much to look at. Her exposed skin was covered in age spots and warts. Her tail was bare. She looked more like a pig than a dog. But we couldn’t help but smile at her. She crawled over to us and quietly laid down, looking up at us—begging to find a spot to settle into our lives. It worked. After a “family meeting” at the local Starbucks, we were convinced that she was the one. When we stopped to pick her up, she nearly ran to our vehicle. With her short legs, she struggled to get into the van, but she had no problem working her way into our hearts.
Now, as many of you pet owners already know, we quickly discovered the toll pets can take on your pocketbook: food, toys, snacks (because food again), ridiculous outfits, and of course, vet visits. This is especially true with the many medical issues older dogs can encounter. But I have to confess—it was worth it. After some treatment and care, she was soon enjoying her golden years, with a full fur coat and a happy, panting smile. She quickly became a member of the family. She loved walks, pup cups at Starbucks, and helping Dad fix breakfast on Saturday mornings. She didn’t even mind the many costume changes the girls picked out for her—from Christmas sweaters to Halloween hats—she put up with all of it. We took her everywhere. She would oblige any request and pant happily.
Over the past few months, her advanced years and harsh life seemed to catch up with her. She moved more slowly. Arthritis had become more serious, and her energy was low. She had lost her hearing, and we suspected her eyesight was fading too. She slept a lot. But she would occasionally spring to life and go on a perimeter check of the house or the yard. She began to stop and stare into the distance—or look directly at us. It was a different look, like someone succumbing to exhaustion, yet incredibly grateful for the love and care she had been given. We noticed that she eventually started to circle in place, as if she were trying to find a comfortable spot to rest. Sadly, the sunset of her golden years was beginning its final approach. Two weeks ago, she made one final circle, laid down, and drifted off into eternity.
We miss her. We are sad. But we are also grateful to have had Lilibet in our lives for a brief time. We do grieve but we remember that grief is the enduring echo of love. Yes, the heart hurts—but it reminds us of the preciousness of the time we have with each other and the love we share. It encourages us to record every moment, savor the journey, and give even more of ourselves and our time to others.
A path without grief is a path without love. Our time with Lilibet reminded me of that. Some of the greatest joys in life can be unlocked if you take time to love, to rescue, to care for someone else—even a pet. Open your heart to another. We need more of that. I suspect we are made for that. Life is short. We can make the most of it by loving, selflessly giving of ourselves, and enjoying the days we have. They pass by fast. Don’t miss the chance to live, to love, to care—and to be cared for. Expect heartbreaks ahead, but they are worth it. Love is the greatest gift of life. Unwrap it with all your heart!
Our First MeetingWelcome Home!Winter Walk!Helping Dad with BreakfasterDoing the DishesParty time!Starbucks Pup Cup Treats!Dressed for HalloweenKeeping the Paparazzi at BayHoliday Baking LessonsHappy Girl!Road Trip!Doggie Social Media PostTrying on New Sweaters!Spring Dreaming!Canine Coder!Lilibet’s FamilyOur Sweet Lady
It was about 1600°C (2912°F). The blast of heat coming from the glass furnace was insufferable. My brother and I were inches away from the pool of glowing hot molten glass behind layers of firebricks. A small “viewport” had been opened by the operator to inspect the glass. Bright orange and yellow light accompanied the blast of heat pouring from the opening. The operator explained the process of adding ingredients to improve the clarity and durability of the glass. The challenge, she told us, was that these additives needed the operators to do this with precision and consistency to ensure the quality of the final product. Currently, it was a manual task with handwritten logs that plant managers would use to ensure production quality. The process was prone to human error and omissions. They were asking, could there be a better way?
My brother had just started at the plant, working on HVAC and industrial electrical equipment. He couldn’t help but think that some of the new computer technology we were playing with could be easily adapter to address their problem. I was still in high school, but we had been working together in the garage after hours on small electronic and programming projects. This could be a new one. We went right to work on designing a system that could sense the number of additives introduced to the furnace by the operators. We decided to use the built-in “game port” on the then popular IBM PC system. That’s right, a game port! The creative adaptation made sense because it had a basic set of digital and analog joystick inputs we needed. My brother built the electronic sensors, and I wrote the device driver for the game port and the software for logging and graphing the results. We even had the system produce a replica of the manual log via a dot matrix printer. A few weeks later and after some testing, we were sure we had a working system. My brother gave a demo to the factory operators and managers, and they wanted it installed right away.
“You just changed our lives!” The operators were delighted. They hated the manual logs. This new system let them focus more on improving the glass quality and less on doing the paperwork. Even the manager now had real-time visibility into the production process. It was a big success. In fact, that same system was in operation for half a decade, all the way up until that Kerr Glass plant closed and was relocated after being acquired by Ball Corp. If you ever used Kerr or Ball glass canning jars, there is a chance the glass that was used to make it was managed by the IBM PC game port solution we built. My brother and I would often laugh about how that old IBM PC was cranking out glass jars… very much like a game.
A big part of our role as engineers is to apply new technologies to business processes, to improve quality, speed, security, and even human happiness. Just like the experience of those plant operators, the application of new automation can bring much needed relief and joy to otherwise mundane processes. I believe we are sitting on the edge of yet another wave of innovation. AI solutions are poised to help relieve even more tedious and labor-intensive processes. As technologist, computer scientist and engineers, it is our role to help discover those opportunities and integrate those solutions into our businesses. We are about to see an explosion of new industry, an evolution of professions, and a rewiring of enterprises influenced by this new AI Industrial Revolution. It is exciting times! And I believe, as technical creatives, we are well poised to help integrate and wield this new digital magic to unlock greater value, new possibilities, and improved ways of working, for Disney, and beyond.
Are you ready? Get busy learning this new science. We should always be experimenting and learning but specifically, now is the time to start understanding, studying, and using these new AI tools. Be proactive. Explore areas where this tech can take us to the next level. Be creative. Let’s start to integrate and responsibly craft these new assistants into every part of our business. I have a feeling that we can help change a lot of lives… and for the better! Are you game?
