As you all probably know, today is the anniversary of the Challenger explosion. For my generation, this is probably the first memorable event that we seem to remember where we were when we heard about it.
I was one of the many students who watched the launch live on tv. For weeks (it seemed), we studied, read, & heard about this event. Remember Weekly Reader? The 4th & 5th grade classes crammed into the hallway to watch the Challenger. I remember feeling shock and disbelief. Is this for real? I kept waiting for the announcer to inform us that this launch was the trial run or something. My memory is pretty cloudy, but I don't remember discussing it much in class. The teachers were pretty stunned as well, and I think they just tried to move on with the day.
Even before the launch, a lot of attention was focused on Christa McAullife, the first teacher to participate in space travel. Science was never my favorite subject....very boring....how can you understand such "hands-on" concepts by merely reading a textbook? Anyways, even though I didn't consider myself good at science, I had an immediate connection to this teacher because she was the only other person I knew who shared my name. Kind of a silly reason, but I felt I held a special bond with her that none of my classmates would understand. Because of this, I wanted to go to Space Camp and be the next "Christa" to join a space mission.
Well as you know, this hasn't happened yet. But this anniversary reminds me of my past dreams and desire to do something significant. (I also wanted to be the first woman president.) My dreams have somewhat changed....maybe reality has just set in. I want my life to be less about me and more about loving and serving others. (But I keep getting in the way.) But the little girl in me every now and then yearns for something big to happen......
So I have 2 questions for you:
1. Where were you when the Challenger exploded?
2. What were/are your dreams?
3 comments:
I stayed home sick from school that day, so I was watching on TV on the couch.
K-What a beautiful post! Thanks for the reminder and the questions.
I was eating lunch in the classroom with my teacher and a couple of other students who were in the "gifted program" (imagine that!). I was so shocked, as I too, wanted to be a teacher in space! (Imagine that one too. Me, the one who doesn't like heights or rollercoasters! HAAA!!)
I guess I had a million dreams at that point in time, and I think somewhere deep inside of me I still do. I just keep hoping that InStyle will finally wake up and realize they need me to travel around the world and write articles for them! ;) (That, among a million other ideas!)
I'm a little late, but I just have to respond. I can remember watching the explosion, over and over again, while having lunch. I just couldn't believe it. I was so smitten with the idea of a teacher, a "real" person going into space. I remember waiting for them to find her or any of the other astronauts alive. I'm not sure why I became so fixated, but that was very traumatic for me. As far as dreams, I do have a page from a school memories book where I actually wrote that I wanted to be an astronaut. I too can remember wanting to go to space camp. I'd almost forgotten wanting to go to space camp. :-)
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