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>> I THINK I OFTEN
DESCRIBE MYSELF AS A SOLDIER,
A PHYSICIAN AND AN ASTRONAUT.
THE PURSUIT OF THOSE
HAPPENED IN THAT ORDER.
AND ONE OF THE EARLIEST MEMORIES
I HAVE IS OF ALWAYS WANTING
TO BE IN THE MILITARY.
OF WANTING TO BE A SOLDIER.
QUITE A HISTORY OF, UH,
MILITARY SERVICE IN OUR FAMILY.
BOTH MY GRANDPARENTS.
UH, MY-MY FATHER
WAS AN AIR FORCE OFFICER.
AND I ALSO REMEMBER MY PARENTS
TELLING ME A STORY ABOUT
MY GREAT UNCLE CLINK,
HARRY McCLINTOCK,
WHO WAS A PARATROOPER
IN WORLD WAR II.
HE WAS IN THE 101st
AIRBORNE DIVISION,
AND JUMPED AT NORMANDY
ON D-DAY.
AND THEN JUMPED IN
OPERATION MARKET-GARDEN
IN HOLLAND.
AND THAT WAS THE FIRST TIME
I HAD EVER HEARD OF THE CONCEPT
OF A PARATROOPER,
OR WHAT IT MEANT TO BE
AN AIRBORNE SOLDIER.
SO WHEN I LATER DECIDED--
I GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL,
AND I WENT TO WEST POINT.
I KNEW THAT I WAS VERY
INTERESTED IN THIS CONCEPT
WITH BEING AN AIRBORNE SOLDIER.
AT WEST POINT,
THEY HAD A PARACHUTE TEAM
CALLED THE BLACK KNIGHTS.
SO I MADE THE PARACHUTE TEAM,
AND, UM, AND THAT BECAME,
UH, ONE OF THE CENTRAL
ACTIVITIES OF MY REMAINING
THREE AND A HALF YEARS
AT WEST POINT.
IN ADDITION TO ACADEMICS,
UH, AFTER CLASS, WE JUMPED
MOST DAYS OF THE WEEK,
BUT THEN, WE WERE ALSO
A DEMONSTRATION TEAM.
SO WE JUMPED IN FOOTBALL GAMES.
UM, ALSO WHILE I WAS A CADET
I WENT THROUGH MILITARY
BASIC AIRBORNE COURSE,
WHICH TAUGHT MILITARY
STATIC LINE PARACHUTING.
SPECIFICALLY THE PARACHUTE
ASPECT OF IT.
IF I GO BACK TO THE TIME
WHEN I WAS A CADET,
MY TEAMMATES
THAT I WAS SELECTED WITH
BECAME MY BEST FRIENDS
IN THE WORLD
AND CONTINUE TO BE
TO THIS DAY.
AND THAT CAMARADERIE
THAT WE HAD, AND THAT DEPENDENCY
WE HAD ON EACH OTHER,
MAKING SURE THAT WE WERE
SKILLED IN THE AIRCRAFT,
SKILLED IN THE AIR,
OUR LIVES DEPENDED ON EACH OTHER
TO DO, UH, SAFETY CHECKS
OF EACH OTHER.
THAT TYPE OF CAMARADERIE
IS SOMETHING THAT I FEEL NOW
IN THE ASTRONAUT CORPS
WITH MY ASTRONAUT COLLEAGUES
AS WELL.
I THINK ABOUT HOW 20 YEARS AGO,
I WAS DEVELOPING THOSE SKILLS,
UH, AT AN EARLY AGE
AND DIDN'T EVEN KNOW IT.
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I'M ANDREW MORGAN,
AND I'M A SOLDIER,
A PHYSICIAN,
AND AN ASTRONAUT.
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