I was ecstatic. I was thrilled, and my first reaction was probably identical to the reaction of the other four members of the crew who were told that same day. We could not believe that we got our chance to go into space. We were the first four from our astronaut class to get to go, and so we had been in training for four years at that time, building up to this point, and the moment that we were told, it was, “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe that I get a chance to do this.” And it was only after that, not long after that, but after that, that I thought, “Oh my gosh, I am going to be the first woman to get to go up, representing this country.”