Chapter 1 - 1969
Dark, fuzzy static washed over the screen like waves in a storm thrashing chaotically. Then, that warm familiar buzzing sound wrapped itself around Gru like a comfy blanket, as he stopped changing channels and put down the remote. Gru sat disapprovingly close to his state of the art RCA New Vista tele-vision set, his mother watching from behind in an armchair. The date was July the 20th, 1969. History was in the making.
Gru was wearing an astronaut costume he had made from cardboard boxes, a costume he had made for this specific occasion. He was up all of last night putting it together, since he could not sleep from all the excitement, all the anticipation for the next day. We were going to walk on that big ball of glowing cheese that took the sun's spot at night time for the first time in human history! The Moon. It was so familiar, yet so alien. So close, yet so far. New land for us to explore, the final frontier. Gru often daydreamed about one day going to the moon, where he would leave his mark, and plant a flag of his patented square G logo.
Gru had always been fascinated with the moon. He would often look through his mother's telescope, and persistently ask her questions like: "Mom, how big is the Moon? Are there aliens on the Moon? Is the Moon really made of cheese?" Her response was always one of two things: "Don't touch my things!" or "Get out of my room!". She usually responded with both. Everybody knew what the moon was, but nobody knew what was actually on the moon. Maybe there were cool aliens who hosted dinner parties. Maybe the moon really was made of cheese. Or, maybe there were cool aliens who hosted dinner parties where they ate cheese, Moon cheese! Anything was possible, and that exited Gru more than anything.
The Broadcast had started. The channel cut to what appeared to be a space shuttle standing confidently on the surface of the moon, like a mountain climber at the peak. The Eagle had landed. Gru was in awe of what he was witnessing. This was the first time anyone, the first time Gru had seen the moon's surface. The view of the space shuttle was a dark blurry mess, but you could still see the moon clearly in all its glory. It was vast. Empty. Dark. Dusty. It was unlike anything he had seen before. Of course he had seen the surface from his telescope, but it was surreal to actually see it this close, from the point of view of the surface itself.
Gru leaned into the television to get a better look at the shuttle, where he was able to make out the shape of a spacesuit climbing down the ladder of the space shuttle. His eyes lit up as he saw his hero descend towards the surface. Gru was on the edge of his rug. He had been waiting for this moment for weeks. He knew what was going to happen, but still it was hard to believe what he was seeing. "This must be what Jehovah's Witnesses felt like when they witnessed Jehovah." Gru thought to himself. He watched in disbelief as Neil Armstrong made his way down the step ladder, one step at a time, each step one step closer to humanity's future. Finally, the astronaut reached the bottom of the ladder. He took one step onto the moon, and said:
"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
Gru couldn't contain himself anymore. He jumped around the living room, cheering as if his favorite sports team had just scored a point.
"Move out of the way son, you're blocking the screen." his mother said disapprovingly. These words snatched Gru out of the moment in an instant. He was still joyous, but now conscious of his mother's judgment. He immediately stopped celebrating and sat back on his spot on the rug.
"Oh, sorry mom." Gru replied shyly.
He continued to watch the broadcast. Niel walked the surface of the moon like an explorer wandering through an undiscovered jungle. Each step was slow and cautious, but also filled with wonder. Gru could care less about his mother's penetrating gaze as he was lost in another world, a world unexplored until today. The astronaut held the US flag in his hands, making his way across the moon finding a spot to plant it. Then, he found a good spot, planted the flag into the surface of the moon, and strook a heroic pose. Gru watched in awe as Niel stood boldly holding his flag. Despite Gru's Russian heritage, he was proud to be an American citizen.
"Ha! Those Bolsheviks never stood a chance!" Gru's mother said snidely.
Gru did not process his mother's remark, and stayed cemented to the screen. What was a Bolshevik anyway? As far as he knew it was something his grandmother used to talk about, usually with an angry tone. He didn't care. In that moment, the only thoughts occupying his mind were visualizations of himself conquering the Moon. He wondered what it was like to be in that spacesuit on the Moon, wondering how Niel felt as he stood on the surface. What was it like to bounce around with 1/5th of the Earth's gravity? What was it like to be in space, to feel weightless? What was it like to go where nobody has gone before? What was it like to be a hero, to be loved and praised by millions of people across the globe? Gru had never felt these things, but wanted to more than ever as he watched his hero fulfill his quest. This quest of space exploration planted itself into Gru's young mind, as he blurted out without hesitation:
"Mom, someday I'm going to go to the Moon!"
The enthusiasm in his voice was undeniable, as he looked towards his mother, seeking her approval of his idea.
"Oh, I'm afraid you're too late, son. NASA isn't sending the monkeys anymore." she replied. There was a passive aggressive tone, a touch of spite in her voice. This struck Gru, as his honest expression of his interests had been rejected in an instant. The light in his eyes dimmed, as he lowered his head towards the floor in shame. He felt embarrassed for suggesting something so unlikely. How could he be an astronaut? How many people even become astronauts?
He looked around the living room, trying to distract himself from his pessimistic thoughts. He noticed a photo of his father hanging on the wall. In the photo his father had his arm around another man, and behind them was a huge rocket. On the rocket was the NASA logo, a blue, starry ball with a big red eyebrow. Both men wore glasses and checkered button up shirts. This photo sparked many questions, as his mother never talked about father. What exactly did father do? Gru's curiosity got the better of him.
"Mom, was my dad an astronaut?" Gru asked.
"Yes, I remember he was applying for NASA..." She replied with a reminiscent tone.
"...until the day you were born." She said, now with a sharp, cutting tone of voice, as if she was trying to hurt Gru personally.
Gru had heard this before, of course, many times. She always told Gru his father had "died of disappointment when he was born", but it hit particularly hard this time. Not only did he feel responsible for his father's death, but he also felt like he crushed his father's chance at a dream job, the same job he himself dreamed of. His father could have been an astronaut, and maybe even the first man on the moon instead of Niel. But no, he was born. "If only I was never born" Gru thought to himself. The guilt felt so much worse than before. Gru turned away from his mother, and looked down at the rug he was sitting on, lost in his thoughts.
While his mother had crushed his spirit, she had confirmed something Gru didn't know. That his father was indeed an astronaut, and could have made it into NASA. This encouraged Gru, as the way he saw it, it was in his blood to be an astronaut. It ran in the family. It was actually quite inspiring knowing that his father had the same aspirations he did. He looked at the photo of his father again and saw that he was smiling. This gave him hope, hope that he could fulfill his father's quest to become a spaceman. He got so close after all. Gru wondered about that job application for NASA, and if he was never born, if his father would have been accepted.
His path was clear. From this point on, Gru made it his mission to become an astronaut at NASA. He was going to study hard, design rockets and train himself to hold his breath for long amounts of time. After he was qualified, he was going to apply for NASA, like his father, and then walk the Moon, like his hero Niel. Gru was going to turn his dreams into visions, and his visions into reality. We had only just stepped foot on the Moon. After all, there was still so much Moon to explore. Gru's optimism returned, now with focus and purpose. He was going to be a hero to all the other Gru's across the globe.
When Niel planted the flag, little did he know he planted a seed in a young Russian immigrant, a seed that would grow greater than anyone could have predicted.