Amiram Hayardeny's My China Experience

Star Trek - Thirty Something Years Later

This is how a ceremony is created.  I come home from work, the kids are still doing homework, playing, or watching something on TV.  Smell of food comes out of the kitchen.  I change, shower and check my email.  Amazingly, one hour after leaving work, there are a couple of dozen messages already...  Dinner, showers, pajamas, and then it starts.  My seven year old daughter carefully takes out the DVD pack and selects the disk we are currently watching.  Then she puts out the light, turns on the TV and the DVD, and we sit down to watch, yes, you may have guessed: Start Trek.

The story usually starts with a quote from the captain's log:  "Captain's Log, Stardate 43385.6. We are orbiting Barzan II, which is entertaining bid for control of what appears to be a stable wormhole which could provide a permanent shortcut to the distant Gamma Quadrant."  Or something similar. 

Then the story begins.  And then, we both wait for it patiently comes the familiar and dramatic: "Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise. It's continuing mission to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations to boldly go where no man has gone before."  Both my daughter and I recite this phrase every single time.  It's exciting.

I remember clearly, many years ago, must be at least thirty (my God, I can't believe I am saying this).  Star Trek was showing every Friday at 3:00 PM.  Indeed, as I am talking about Israel, Friday was a half working / school day.  Still 3:00 PM clearly was not a prime time slot.  Yet, I would try to do everything to be there on time.  To meet Captain James T. Kirk, Mr. Spok, and Bones (Dr. McCoy) and join their adventures in the great and strange universe.  Indeed, occasionally I would ask myself the obvious questions: how come all aliens speak English, why do they all look reasonable human (additional ears, and strange shaped forehead does not count)?  But there was always an interesting plot, a question, something to resolve, to assess, to understand.  There were adjustments to be made - alien worlds have different rules.  There were laws to be kept - the prime directive (*) to name one.  And imagine, the original Star Trek aired in 1966(!!!), over forty years ago.

My favorite, though, is Captain Picard.  It is over thirty years later, and I am watching this still relevant show with my kid daughter.  And she loves it.  Now, I am not sure whether she loves it because it is really interesting to her, or simply because she gets to see it with Dad.  But does it really matter?  I truly believe that reading and watching science fiction (not the ones with the green dripping aliens...) opens the mind, the horizons.  It takes you to strange new worlds, to interesting adventures, to places where no man has gone before!

(*) As the right of each sentient species to live in accordance with its normal cultural evolution is considered scared, no Star Fleet personnel may interfere with the healthy development of alien life and culture.  Such interference includes the introduction of superior knowledge, strength, or technology to a world whose society is incapable of handling such advantages wisely.  Star Fleet personnel may not violate this Prime Directive, even to save their lives and/or their ship unless they are acting to right an earlier violation or an accidental contamination of said culture.  This directive takes precedence over any and all other considerations, and carries with it the highest moral obligation.

Ah, in the meantime, my four year old son watches Tom and Jerry on the other TV.  I wish I could beam myself to the other room occasionally...

Posted at 09:50AM Mar 16, 2007 by Amiram Hayardeny in Personal  |  Comments[3]