On July 20, 1969, the young parents walked into the baby’s room, woke her up and propped her upright to stare at a black and white television with a screen ¼ the size of the console around it.

The daughter was one day shy of her 2-month “birthday” and waking any 2-month-old is a dangerous proposition, but it did not matter to the young parents. They wanted her to see history — a man walking on the moon.

Newspapers went wild. A replicate front page from the July 22 issue of The Vicksburg Evening Post hangs in the newsroom, “MEN ON MOON,” the headline declares.

A monumental event in history worthy of its top headline — and waking up a 2-month-old girl.

Fast forward.

In the wee hours of Monday morning, a space ship launched 8½ months ago neared its destination — the planet Mars. Without traffic delays or tolls, the capsule traveled 352 million miles. That’s driving from Jacksonville, Fla., to San Diego and back 75,439 times.

After hurdling through space for almost the length of a woman’s pregnancy, it descended in the spot anticipated, at the time predicted and, in Olympic parlance, it stuck the landing.

I was sound asleep. The dog was sound asleep. There were no intentions at the house to get up and watch. Yeah, well, we made it to Mars. Big deal.

It should have been a big deal. It was for some, but most kept on the merry ways continuing the fight over church and chicken and hurling racist allegations for not wanting to see someone’s backside hanging out of their pants. Important stuff.

Landing on Mars 352 million miles from Earth? Eh, ho-hum.

Missing is the wow factor. The sense of wonderment in an accomplishment so great and so difficult, it leaves a person in stunned awe, is missing. When we can carry a computer-telephone-video camera-music studio the size of a pack of baseball cards in our hip pockets, Mars just isn’t “wow” anymore.

And if 352 million miles cannot wow us or make us feel pride in our country and the men and women who toiled for 10 years for that moment, I wonder what can?

Lori doesn’t remember watching Neil Armstrong descend those stairs to the moon’s surface, but how many 2-month-olds could? She probably sat on Mom’s lap with drool on her chin and eyes closed. But she saw man walk on the moon.

Wow!