by Lisa Wingate
Q. Ed, Lisa jokingly calls you the “real-life Norman” and credits you with having helped to inspire the story. Can you tell us how this came about?
A. I first met Lisa Wingate when I read her book Texas Cooking. I still laugh every time I think about the section where she tells about the bush hogs. Wonderful story. I realized very quickly that the reader didn’t need to run the book through a testosterone filter. Her characters are balanced. As I was reading it, I found that she had written more books. I immediately ordered all of them and have so thoroughly enjoyed them. I have read each of them many times. After reading Texas Cooking, I sent an e-mail to Lisa thanking her for writing such an outstanding book. I mentioned some of my experiences with computers and offered to help with anything that would free some time for her to write more books. Over time as we worked on projects, I relayed some of my experiences in related areas, via e-mails, and we became good friends.
Q. Ed, in the story, Epiphany is fascinated by the tale of the Russian trawlers trying to sabotage the launches. Can you tell us what you remember about that?
A. We had run tests on the spacecraft back in the assembly area, which was some distance from the launchpad, and the system worked. Then when we took it to the launchpad and ran tests, the receiver/transmitter (R/T) had problems. We replaced the R/T unit, ran the tests in the assembly area, and it looked good. We then took the system back to the launchpad and had the same problems with the R/T unit. After some effort, we learned that a Russian trawler was in the area. In those days at the cape, some of us assumed that Russian trawlers were there to jam rocket/missile R/F hardware. I can’t remember the details, but the problem was solved, and Surveyor was launched to the moon.
Q. Ed, in the story, Norman remembers his time at the cape as his Camelot. Can you share some of your feelings about your experiences as a young man, working on such an exciting project?
A. The Surveyor project occupied a lot of our time, but we somehow found the time for Fat Boy’s Barbecue at lunchtime and during a lot of suppertimes, too. Fat Boy’s was located not too far from the southern entrance to the cape. Sometimes we discussed the Russian trawlers and wondered whether they were at that moment showering us with radio waves. Sometimes while we were there, there would be a missile launch. My wife and I lived a good distance from the cape on Switch Grass Island. We had a cabin with a porch that hung over the entrance to Lake Poinsett, which was a very large freshwater lake. Fishermen would maneuver their boats right under our window and wake us up about four or five a.m. on their way to the lake. We finally got used to that. It seemed worth the price, as we could fish off the back porch of our home.
I remember when we were working on Surveyor in California there were a lot of comments, both by professionals and nonprofessionals, claiming that Surveyor would fail. Many felt that even if Surveyor did get off on time, even if it did have a successful midcourse maneuver, even if the attitude-control jets worked correctly, even if the retro rocket (braking energy for a soft landing) did work, then the spacecraft would sink out of sight beneath the moondust on landing. I still get excited when I think of Surveyor 1 accomplishing its goals—against all the odds and negative comments. I want to personally thank Lisa Wingate for bringing back some of the Hughes Surveyor team experiences that were lost in the vaults of history. Experiences that are now available to everyone. Lisa is an outstanding author whom I have enjoyed working with very much!
Q. Ed, do you ever think of Surveyor and wonder what has become of the amazing machine you helped to build?
A. Yes, over the years, I have thought about Surveyor a lot. A while ago I saw a picture of Surveyor 1 on the moon’s surface, taken by a satellite in 2009. Memories came flooding back. It has been there for forty-four years . . . all alone. I think about Howard Hughes and his Surveyor team, and about the high chance of failure. I wonder what stories Surveyor could tell about what it has seen since arriving in 1966. Has it seen others like itself? How have its electronics and metals weathered on the lunar surface? Is the solar panel covered with dust, or do the solar winds keep it clean? Is the battery still in one piece? If only it could talk. How like Surveyor are we? We are built, launched, and given the opportunity to wander the currents of the cosmos.
Q. Norman mentions many exciting events at the cape, including the catastrophic explosion on launchpad 36-A, near the pond where the liquid oxygen gave the resident alligator a surprise. Can you tell us a bit more about that event?
A. I believe it was early March 1965 when a Surveyor SD-1 was the payload on an Atlas/Centaur rocket launch that exploded on the 36-A launchpad. The rocket lifted just a short distance from the launchpad, and failure of the fuel-delivery system caused the engines on the Atlas to shut down, and it settled back to the launchpad and exploded. The launchpad and associated cabling were destroyed. It was rumored that the “old” alligator in the nearby “LOX” pond decided it had had enough and promptly left the area.
The 36-A launchpad was completely rebuilt, and on Memorial Day 1966, Surveyor 1 was launched to the moon and soft-landed a few days later and transmitted back “live” pictures of the moon’s surface.
Q. Ed, when writers create a story, they often have hopes and dreams as to the effect that story will have on readers. What are your hopes for Norman and Epiphany?
A. Norman is a highly talented engineer with mountains of high-quality experience and, because of his health, put out to pasture and waiting for the final exit. Epiphany is an economically and parentally poor young girl of interracial parentage who is really sharp, but has very little hope of being successful. The two are thrown together and over time develop a valuable friendship.
My hope for Norman and Epiphany as the book ends is for them to grow even closer together—for Norman to use his influence and contacts to encourage Epiphany to go to college and expose her to the advantages of getting involved in science. In the end, it is my hope that Epiphany and Norman will set up a corporation and work together to go to Mars. Just as important as the science goal is her personal goal. It’s important for Norman to try to teach her the importance of choosing the right mate and preventive maintenance regarding her health. Good health is one of the most important assets a person can have.
I hope that the story of Norman and Epie will inspire fathers to take time with their children while they have the chance. I remember when our daughter was very young, she would push a chair taller than she by the kitchen table and help me assemble electronic parts in piles, and build multimeters, amplifiers, or some other device from a kit. Unfortunately I only did that a few times. If I could somehow go back in time and could make one change, it would be to rearrange schedules and spend more time with her. We have only one chance to spend today with the people we love.
Q. Any other thoughts you’d like to share, either about the book or about the bits of history you contributed to the story?
A. I have worked at the cape, Wallops Island, White Sands, in some of the Scandinavian countries, some countries in Europe, and Saudi Arabia on a lot of different projects. In the forty-four years since Surveyor 1 soft-landed on the moon, no technical project or company has created as much excitement or the thrill of success that the Surveyor program generated. It is my hope that everyone can, at least one time in their lives, experience that level of excitement.
The year 1966 was one of the most exciting times of my professional and personal life. Surveyor was launched and successfully soft-landed on the moon. I was a young married man, starting my own family. A few months after the Surveyor landing, in September, our wonderful daughter, Shannon, was born. We have, indeed, been very blessed, and that year we were blessed in countless ways.
Q. Ed, in the story, Norman writes a letter to Deborah, finally confessing his failures as a father and his regrets. If you could write an open letter to all the young fathers out there, what advice would you give them, in terms of making a difference in the lives of their daughters?
A. What can a father do to make a diffe
rence? Invest (not spend) quality time with your daughter, starting as soon as possible. Please note that a babysitter, TV, or video and audio devices are no substitute. Start reading to her as soon as possible, too. Read her favorite stories at night as she goes to sleep. Take her to the grocery store or other places with you from time to time. Go to her sports events. Go to her parent-teacher meetings. Help with her homework.
Tell your daughter that you love her. Tell her often. As soon as possible, start telling her you love her. Right after birth and all the way through until she leaves home. When she gets old enough to reason, it’s probably better to tell her in passing. In other words, when she leaves to go catch the school bus, or leaves to go to the ball game, or leaves to go to the store. As she starts for the door, look at her in the face and say, “Shannon [or your daughter’s name], I love you,” and mean it! This gives her an invisible shield to protect her against all the negative she experiences while she’s gone. And when the negative comes at her, she’ll think, My daddy loves me. These people can’t hurt me! After a while, one day she says it back. “Dad, I love you.” That’s when you stand ten feet tall and know you love her so much.
These are the things a father can do to make a difference. Remember, Dad, you are investing time in her future and your future.
This is what I would tell young fathers, if I could write an open letter.
Q. Lisa, how can readers find you on the Internet?
A. I love keeping in touch with readers and sharing the stories behind the stories. Readers can find me on my Web site, .www.Lisawingate.com. Just for signing up for the e-newsletter, you’ll be entered in a monthly drawing for a free, autographed book. Readers can also find me on Facebook or YouTube, and blogging with writer friends at www.SouthernBelleView.com. Readers or teachers using Dandelion Summer can learn more about Surveyor 1, the men who built it, and the history of the time by visiting www.Lisawingate.com for information and Web links.
Answers to Ed Stevens’s conversation guide
interview questions are courtesy of Ed Stevens.
CONVERSATION GUIDE
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
1. Early in the story, Norman feels that the best part of his life has passed him by. Have you ever yearned for a time in the past? Is there a period of your life you would return to, if you could? Do you associate this time with particular events in the nation or in the world?
2. Norman and his daughter find themselves at odds over Norman’s care. What difficulties are inherent in the reversal of roles that comes as parents age? What can we do to ease this transition for both aging parents and caregivers?
3. Although she is smart and talented, Epiphany lacks confidence and is trapped in a difficult situation. Her friendship with Norman changes her life. Has a friendship ever dramatically changed your life?
4. Norman and Epiphany’s cross-generational relationship is rich for both of them. How can close relationships with people of very different ages benefit us? What cross-generational relationships have you enjoyed the most?
5. Epiphany is torn between the negative influences of her family and her surroundings, and an innate inner drive to live a different sort of life. How do early family and cultural experiences preprogram us to think and act in certain ways? What aspects of your character hail from the environment in which you were raised?
6. Norman begins to suspect that a family secret has been hidden from him all of his life. Why do you think his adoptive parents chose not to tell him about his past? Do you think it was the right choice? Have you ever discovered secrets that had been hidden in your family?
7. What is your impression of Cecile? If not for the fire, do you think she would have sought a way to help the children in the house with the seven chairs? What do you think became of her after the children were moved to new homes?
8. Even though Dandelion Summer deals with serious issues, there are many funny scenes. What is your favorite humorous scene?
9. The real Surveyor 1 craft is still sitting on the surface of the moon, where it has remained since its mission was finished and its hardware was shut down. Its engineers wonder what has become of their creation. What do you remember about the space missions?
10. As the country faces major technological challenges—how to feed and house a growing population, and how to address pollution and diminishing resources, for example—many people rely on American technological ingenuity and innovation to solve the problem. Others fear that our faith in technology has outpaced our ability. What do you think? What current events support your position?
11. Discuss the qualities required of a nation to “be the best” and remain on the cutting edge of technology. Do we as a nation still possess those qualities?
12. What do you think will become of Norman and Epiphany in the future?
OTHER NOVELS BY LISA WINGATE
The Blue Sky Hill Series
A Month of Summer
The Summer Kitchen
Beyond Summer
The Tending Roses Series
Tending Roses
Good Hope Road
The Language of Sycamores
Drenched in Light
A Thousand Voices
The Texas Hill Country Trilogy
Texas Cooking
Lone Star Café
Over the Moon at the Big Lizard Diner