What Makes a Crew - April 11, 2026

I couldn't sleep this morning, so I did write some words down in my mind and I'm going to try and share them with you today.

Ten days ago, this journey started with our mission manager, Shawn Duval, knocking on my door in crew quarters and whispering, "Christina, we're go for launch. Get up."

And it ended last night when my nurse on the ship put me to bed and said, "Ma'am, can I get a hug?" So, a lot has happened since then, but, um, or between those two moments, but the start and the end were human moments here on Earth.

So, several years ago, I was giving a speech and I was doing my usual talk about crew and crew mates and teamwork and someone asked the question, "What makes a crew? What is different about a crew than a team?" And I was like, "I got this." Opened my mouth confidently to tell them everything I knew about being a crew mate. And everything that came out of my mouth was completely without value. I was like, "Yeah, crews, they're, you know, they're in space and uh they work together, but they eat together, too. So, you know, they're a crew." And, uh, boats have crews. You know, you're a crew. If you're on a boat, helps if you have a paddle. That's that'll be good. That'll make you a crew.

But the last 10 days, I've gotten a little bit of a better answer on that question. A crew is people or you know a group that is in it all the time no matter what. That is stroking together every minute with the same purpose. That is willing to sacrifice silently for each other. That gives grace. That holds accountable. A crew has the same cares and the same needs. And a crew is inescapably, beautifully, dutifully linked.

So when we saw tiny Earth, people asked our crew what impressions we had. And honestly, what struck me wasn't necessarily just Earth. It was all the blackness around it. Earth was just this lifeboat hanging undisturbingly in the universe. [chokes up] Uh oh. So, I may have not learned, I know I haven't learned everything that this journey has yet to teach me, but there's one new thing I know, and that is, planet Earth, you are a crew.

Thank you.