1968 was a turbulent year in the US and around the world.  In January, the war in Vietnam exploded with the start of the Tet Offensive.  Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed in Memphis and violence broke out in cities across the country.  Just two months later, Robert Kennedy was assassinated after announcing his victory in the California primary.  The democratic national convention was marred by violent clashes between police and war protesters.  Around the world, people - particularly youth and students, were demonstrating for change. 

Much like the shepherds and wise men during the first Christmas, people around the world turned their attention toward the heavens as Christmas approached that year.  Commander Frank Borman, Command Module Pilot Jim Lovell and Lunar Module Pilot William Anders launched aboard Apollo 8 on a mission to become the first humans to orbit the Moon in preparation for the big event of Apollo 11. They entered lunar orbit on Christmas Eve.

The Apollo crew sent Christmas greetings and live images back to Earth and read from the book of Genesis.  It is estimated that more than one billion people watched the historic broadcast or listened on the radio. The Apollo 8 crewmembers ended their history-making journey when they splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on December 27.

Here is the original broadcast:

It is said that those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.  We should also learn from history in a contextual sense, as Jim Parker mentioned in our previous article.  It can be difficult to appreciate what we have without knowing where we've come from.  The lessons of 1968 are relevant today.  We live in a world with far less poverty and far more freedom, at least partially as a result of the struggles of the past and the technologies that were developed as we strived to meet the challenge of putting a man on the moon.  If we are dissatisfied with the status quo, as many of us are, then we have the freedom and the opportunity to effect change. 

From all of us to our valued clients and friends, best wishes for a safe and happy holiday season however you may choose to celebrate it.  Merry Christmas.  Happy Hanakkuh.  Happy Festivus!  And, best wishes for a New Year filled with peace, hope and prosperity.