Canadian astronauts
point to mental health
as the most important aspect
of maintaining humans in space.
Everything is the same every day, they say.
You are stuck with the same people
in tight quarters. Nowhere to go
for months on end.
And these conditions can lead to depression.
The Canadian Space Agency
spares no resources, eager
to enhance the well-being of crew members
who face stress and isolation
on board the International Space Station.
Up there,
in a remote Inuit community,
winter is long and cold.
Houses overcrowded. People stuck
in tight quarters. Nowhere to go
for months on end.
(Editor’s note: poet Shai Ben-Shalom, an Israeli-born biologist, writes for Blacklock’s each and every Sunday)
