Exceptionally Uncaught

There was an episode of the TV show Star Trek: The Next Generation that started with Data (the android character) playing poker with Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking. Obviously Newton and Einstein were actors, but Hawking was playing himself.

Apparently Hawking is a Star Trek fan, and so jumped at the chance to appear in an episode. The story goes that they game him a tour of the set, and when they got the bridge, Hawking asked if they could put him in the captain's chair. This was a huge deal, since Hawking never asks to be taken out of his wheelchair.

I really like this story, because it reminds me of two very important things. Firstly, no matter how famous or smart of whatever someone is, they still have hopes and dreams just like everyone else. Deep down everyone's the same - human.

The second thing I always think of when I think about this story is that no matter where your life takes you or how successful or famous you get, you should never be afraid to jump at a chance to full fill a dream when it appears. You should never loose that child-like part of you that wants to be the captain of the Enterprise.