Two weekends ago, we loaded up the kids and went to the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (the Dulles annex of the National Air and Space Museum) to see the space shuttle Discovery.
Since Discovery had arrived only a few days before, replacing the Enterprise permanently, there were a lot of people there. Like us, they wanted to get up close to a piece of history.
I look at Discovery–at any space shuttle–and what I see reflected back to me is the human spirit. To me, space shuttles represent the power and fragility, triumph and tragedy, imperfection and ingenuity, the curiosity and will of humanity.
As a race and as individuals, we’ve gotten a lot wrong. I won’t enumerate that list here, but when I think of the courage and intellect and drive that took humans to space (space!) I can’t help but see the image of God shining through us, dimly though it might be.
Rest well, Discovery. You have earned it.
I agree with you. I think some of humanity’s proudest moments have been when we took our first tentative steps off our home planet Earth. I hope that someday we will manage to continue that quest, but until then I’ll have to satisfy myself with reading and writing stories about it. 🙂
Yes, it’s a great big universe out there. I’d love to know more of its secrets!