Challenger

I was 11 years old when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds into its journey. Because I attended school in New Hampshire, I guess it hit differently—everyone's teacher was "almost" Christa McAuliffe. Two days prior, the New England Patriots were defeated 46-10 by the Miami Dolphins. I didn't even see most of the lopsided game because I had the flu. I was devastated. Unlike my classmates, I wasn't in school that day they wheeled the television to watch the launch as I was still stuck in a fever dream. I was sick in bed alone while my parents were at work and watched the tragedy later on the news. I think. That was the last day I gave a shit about space or football. This work is about space. To me, everyone's an astronaut.