The Earth Is Blue... How

Looking At The Earth From Afar You Realize It Is Too Small For Conflict And Just Big Enough For Co-operation.

When They Saw Me In My Space Suit And The Parachute Dragging Alongside As I Walked, They Started To Back Away In Fear. I Told Them, Don’t Be Afraid, I Am A Soviet Like You, Who Has Descended From Space And I Must Find A Telephone To Call Moscow!

What Beauty. I Saw Clouds And Their Light Shadows On The Distant Dear Earth.... The Water Looked Like Darkish, Slightly Gleaming Spots.... When I Watched The Horizon, I Saw The Abrupt, Contrasting Transition From The Earth's Light-colored Surface To The Absolutely Black Sky. I Enjoyed The Rich Color Spectrum Of The Earth. It Is Surrounded By A Light Blue Aureole That Gradually Darkens, Becoming Turquiose, Dark Blue, Violet, And Finally Coal Black.

I Saw For The First Time The Earth's Shape. I Could Easily See The Shores Of Continents, Islands, Great Rivers, Folds Of The Terrain, Large Bodies Of Water. The Horizon Is Dark Blue, Smoothly Turning To Black. . . The Feelings Which Filled Me I Can Express With One Word-joy.

If All Those People Are Getting Wet To Welcome Me, Surely The Least I Can Do Is Get Wet Too!