It is no exaggeration to say that Commander Chris Hadfield is good at almost everything. Decorated fighter pilot, astronaut, first Canadian to walk in space, first Canadian to operate the Canadarm, first and only Canadian to board the MIR space station, first and only Canadian commander of the International Space Station, a talented musician, including as a musician in space. And now, added to that list is international keynote speaker, entrepreneur, and multiple international bestselling author. His face is everywhere on TED Talks, MasterClass and now, even in commercials.
that inspires awe in Chris Hadfield.
His second grandchild was just born to his daughter.
Photo from Hadfield family album.
While his successes are a huge source of pride for Canada, especially these days, they are not something he spends much time thinking about.
“If you’re spending time looking back you’re going to either miss or bump into your future. I am more interested in facing forward, in what’s going on today and how can I help shape the productivity of things that are going on now and in the future.”
While that may be the case, who can forget his hauntingly beautiful rendition of David Bowie’s Space Oddity from the cosmos? He had better get used to hearing more about his accomplishments in the coming months as we approach the 30th anniversary of his first space flight in November, even if, for him, “the whole idea of an anniversary is arbitrary.”
This chameleonic Canadian hero has the golden touch and his secret is laser focus and a heightened sense of perfectionism. His father, Roger Hadfield, the patriarch of the first family of flight (all three Hadfield sons are pilots) said those qualities have motivated Chris since he first became obsessed with space during the moon landing in 1969.
When Chris was safely in orbit during his second space flight in 2001 (he has been to space three times), the senior Hadfield said: “Chris always knew that he had to be the best to achieve what he wanted, and so, he was always the best.”
While Chris makes it all look easy, it isn’t.
“If you think you’ve learned it the easy way then you haven’t learned it. You have to do the work if you want to accomplish something. I think the important thing is to set yourself complex goals and then work really hard to change yourself and change things to be able to allow you to succeed every single day.”
Hadfield’s Take on Life
With practical answers like oxygen, water and food for things he can’t live without — spoken like a true scientist — don’t be fooled into thinking that he is not philosophical or deep.
His take on spirituality? “I don’t think any of us is brave enough to make it through life on our own. It is daunting and confusing and there’s no rule book. Having a sense of being part of something that’s greater than ourselves I think it’s really important, whether that’s a group that you belong to, something you believe, or it’s an innate sense of spirituality and the enormity of history, of nature and life. But a lot of our conflict comes from people latching onto something and then deciding they alone have the correct answer to questions and then using it to degrade or harm other people. It is reprehensible.”
While he has seen parts of our fantastic universe, the one thing that has surprised him more than anything was witnessing birth on Earth.
“The biggest prize I’ve had is to watch my child being born. It is such a humbling, significant and awe-inspiring thing to be a part of. It is brutal, painful and human, and for me to have been in the delivery room was a truly magnificent surprise.”
He and his wife Helene, high school sweethearts, have three children. “We were in a play together and while I’m a terrible actor, I won the jackpot by meeting her.”
While acting may not have grabbed him, music did.
“There was always music in our household. My mom is a fantastic piano player and a gifted singer. I’d like to be better at harmony singing myself. It is one of my goals. My brother and I bought a guitar when I was nine and in high school I learned to play the trombone. There were bands along the way including a marching band. Music has always been a part of my life.”
The best piece of advice he has ever had? “Trust yourself.”
For the average person that is one thing, but for an astronaut, that takes on a whole other meaning such as trusting your abilities and memory in space.
“You are leaving Earth and if there’s a problem, often one of the first things you lose is communications. If you have an electrical problem or a vehicle control problem, they affect your ability to run radios and communications so that means anything can go wrong and no matter what, we had to deal with it. Someone getting electrocuted, having to reprogram the altitude control system or having a leak in the ship, whatever the undertaking, the memory task was enormous. To be able to remember everything and be able to do it on your own was an incredible challenge.”
While “motivated” and “hardworking” are not shocking ways he describes himself, “delighted” is a surprising word, and offers fabulous insight into his approach to life.
The wonderment he has for life is infectious and he has no time for regret.
“Don’t dwell on the path you can’t change. The only thing you have control over is what you’re going to do next, so try and do better next time based on what you learned from the past.”
With strong ties to the west, (his mother-in-law lives in Sidney and Chris attended Royal Roads), Chris has seen our neck of the world in a way none of us ever will during his 2,650 orbits around the world.
That experience, he says, “opened up all that is possible and, if anything, it just reinforces your sense of the uniqueness and the beauty or Earth but also the importance of recognizing our responsibility for being a good steward of our planet.”
What Does The Future Hold?
While Chris speaks Russian, French and English, he wants to learn other languages. He is also fascinated by archaeology, paleontology and geology. “Those are high on my list of subjects to study.”
“I set myself goals and then I try and change who I am…I try and do that thing as well as I can. I think that’s the secret to life — dream about what you love, what you want your life to be. How are you making daily choices to make those things more and more part of what you are and what you do?”
One of the most rewarding things about this time in his life is once again around childbirth.
“My daughter has just given birth to a beautiful baby girl, Wren. It is magical to have my own daughter become a mother.”
He also has a nine-year-old granddaughter from his son and daughter-in-law, whom he “loves to death.”
“I couldn’t be luckier as a grandpa and that’s the most exciting thing in my life right now.”
He has schools and parks named after him, not to mention an asteroid, but the proof that his influence knows no bounds is the fact that he has a bee named after him. “Yes, I have an insect named after me.”
Is that the strangest honour? “Well,” he says, “strange is in the eye of the beholder, isn’t it?” As he has explored the possible in his life, he has brought us along, taken us beyond our own imagination, inspiring us to reach for the stars. His next book comes out in the autumn and we await with great anticipation where he will take us next.
2,122 views