On Friday, Flora’s Friday Film showed The Martian, a 2015 science fiction film depicting an astronaut who was mistakenly presumed dead and left behind on a manned space mission to Mars, his miraculous survival, and the extraordinary attempt by NASA and his fellow astronauts to save his life and bring him home.  A space storm picked up in magnitude ahead of schedule, leaving the team to scramble to abort their mission and return to Earth.  During the ordeal, the protagonist Mark Watney is struck by an object that pierces his space suit.  Miraculously, Watney survives and finds a way to communicate with Earth while farming potatoes on Mars.  However, he cannot survive for too long on Mars, as his supplies will run out in about two years.  Given the great distance between Earth and Mars and the limitations of NASA and space travel, rescuing Watney would be a difficult challenge.  

What struck me most while watching this movie was the lengths to which the scientists at NASA and the astronauts on the spaceship home to Earth were willing to go to try and save Watney.  Because of the magnitude and abruptness of the storm, having five out of six astronauts make it back to the spaceship alive was an amazing feat in and of itself.  However, when they found out that Watney was still alive, they dropped everything to find a way to bring him home.  Thousands of hours were spent overtime to prepare a rocket with extra supplies to be sent to him.  Hundreds of people were carefully analyzing his activity on Mars and communicating with him, as the world earnestly hoped for his return home.  

This effort reminded me of the Parable of the Lost Sheep, where a shepherd with a hundred sheep loses one and leaves the ninety-nine in one place in search of the lost one.  When the shepherd returns with the lost sheep, everyone rejoices.  NASA could have been satisfied with five out of six astronauts making it back safely to Earth after facing tumultuous conditions.  However, they viewed bringing Mark Watney home safely as worth the significant cost to do so.  I think the film is encouraging us to look to those lost or forgotten in our society and to do our best to improve their lives.