Excerpt from Anita K. Mitchell’s You Don’t Look Like an Astronaut’s Wife! A Memoir of Improbability, Impossibility, and Still Making It All Happen.
Whether Ed and I were in Nob Hill, the society neighborhood of San Francisco at a dinner, or in Palm Beach at the Beach Club, or at a Fourth of July parade in Iowa, there was always a receiving line. As the important guests at the event they would introduce Ed first: “This is Apollo 14 Astronaut and sixth man to walk on the moon, Ed Mitchell, and this is his wife.” (Sometimes they would say “sweet wife.”)
With an authentic smile I would shake hands and share a friendly “It’s lovely to meet you.” It honestly never bothered me that my name wasn’t added to the introduction, but about 30 percent of the time they would remark: “Really!” And smiling, they would add: “You don’t look like an astronaut’s wife!”
In fact I found their comment rather humorous as I knew it never was said in a mean-spirited way. I would leave the description to “the eyes of the beholder” or assume they were not sure what to say, and I have continued to believe that ever since.
Years later my career took me to Tallahassee to attend the annual three-month legislative session where bills were passed and budgets voted on. As was the custom, at the end of the day many of us met at Clyde’s, a popular watering hole right down from the Capitol.
A few minutes after walking in and saying hello to some friends, I noticed a senator I recognized was motioning to me from across the bar. I walked over and he introduced me to his friend, a lobbyist for the insurance industry. “This is Anita Mitchell, the ex-wife of an astronaut.”
I smiled and said, “It’s very nice to meet you.”
What came next prompted me to chuckle. As sure as my name is Anita, he shook my hand and said, “Really!? You don’t look like an astronaut’s EX-wife!”
I just thought it was incredibly funny. And recalling it years later, it seemed like a perfect name for this book.
And so it begins… an improbable journey without a road map, of beating the odds without realizing it. Writing this book, I realize that I still marvel at all the so-called “coincidences” that “seemed” to be always with me on this journey.
Q: What inspired you to write this memoir?
A: Actually, two reporters from the Palm Beach Post (who are now retired) covered Ed and me from when we first moved to Palm Beach. Dan Moffet, one of the Post’s editors, was particularly interested in the space program and interviewed me a couple of times in addition to Ed. I owned a PR firm in West Palm and interfaced with the media often for clients. Dan was often the reporter covering the story, and afterward we would chat. He was very good at getting stories out of me.
During one of our conversations, he suggested that I should write a book. I reminded him that I didn’t go to the moon and asked why in the world I would write a book.
Long story short, he convinced me that the stories I shared as a guest speaker in many community events he covered, and during our chats, were stories people would love to hear — specifically about my journey marrying Ed. Other reporters suggested this to me several times. He suggested that I retain a writer who would do an overview by interviewing me and see if what he came up with would make me comfortable writing a memoir. I liked what he captured from our interview. I showed it to my kids and they liked it. Still, six years later, after encouragement from friends and colleagues, I decided to take the leap. Though I wrote it, I did retain a collaborator who helped guide me through the process and the steps required to get it printed and to the marketplace. He did the layout. And a very accomplished writer and good friend did the final edit.
Q: What is your favourite part about the memoir?
A: The responses I received from readers gave me the greatest satisfaction. As I read them, I realized they took away what I had hoped they would. For example, that happiness is a choice, to take the good and leave the rest; that they enjoyed the humour; and many remarked they liked the authenticity. The best part of all was that no matter what the day was like – crying while remembering the tough times – I pushed on and at the end, I knew for sure that what I had written was truly a labour of love.
Q: What are our favourite pastimes lately?
A: Being with my kids, grandkids, and now great-grands.
Q: Why do you think humans are so fascinated with space?
A: I think exploration is in our DNA in one form or another going back to the beginning of time. Think about how often you and we all look up at the moon and wonder what’s it all about out there? And just think, for the first time in human history man was able to look back at planet Earth.
Q: What was the hardest lesson you learned during your marriage to an astronaut?
A: To keep my feet on the ground; to not believe my press clippings; to be myself.
Q: A quote you live by or a piece of advice that stayed with you?
A: Forgiveness helps you much more than the person you forgive. And as I ended the book: “Remember during your challenges God’s not through with you yet.”
Q: What do you think an astronaut’s wife looks like in people’s minds?
A: I actually explain the title at the beginning of the book. I tell the story during talks that I give: I always give the same answer: “I leave it in the eyes of the beholder.”
