[Note: I'm not in the habit of starting new threads if I don't have to, but none of the current threads felt right for this.]



This is dedicated to the crew of Apollo I, to the crews of the orbiters Challenger and Columbia. This is dedicated to all people of all nations, past, present, and future, lost while bravely challenging our limits and perceptions.

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<u>A Tale of the Sea, the Wind, and the Void.</u>
by Moose.


Early in our History, we were limited to where our feet could take us, with whatever goods we could carry on our backs or drag behind us.

We were limited.

Eventually, we learned how to harness the Sea, and built ships which could carry far more goods than we could alone. We learned how to harness the Wind so that ships could be sailed with smaller crews.

And ships were lost, for the Sea is a harsh and fickle mistress.

And crews were lost, for the Wind is just as harsh and fickle a master as is the Sea.

And only a few things had to go wrong to lose a ship with all hands.

Still, we who survived learned from the Sea and from the Wind how to make bigger, faster, stronger and safer ships. And we were better able to harness the Sea. And we were better able to harness the Wind.

And we were limited to the Coast and to where our feet could take us.

Still, we stayed within sight of the Coast, for the Sea is vast.

When there is naught but the Sea, and naught but the Wind around you, it is all too easy to become disoriented. Disoriented, we could run out of supplies. We could be unable to find anchorage if the Wind, in His spite, raised a tempest, and the ships, and the crews, would be lost. Even with a gentle Wind, we could and did miss our landfall, and we starved.

Eventually, we discovered Magnetism and learned how to navigate using the World's magnetic field. We discovered that by measuring the height of certain Stars in the Void, we could determine how far north or south we were. We learned to determine the speed of our ships and the speed of the currents, and we could then determine how far east or west we were.

We learned to navigate, and were able to sail out of sight of the Coast.

Eventually, we found a large, sparsely settled Land. And we came. Your ancestors came. My ancestors came.

We came to build new lives for ourselves and formed great Nations, Cities, and Cultures. Nations that exist yet to this day.

And we never stopped building bigger and better ships, and we never stopped learning better ways to harness the Sea and the Wind.

Still, we lost ships, and crews. For still, we are at the mercy of the Sea. For the Sea is still a harsh and fickle mistress and what She wants, She takes.

We eventually learned how to harness the Wind in a new way. And we took to the Sky. And we were no longer at the mercy of the Sea. And we were no longer limited to the Coast. And we were no longer limited to where our feet could take us.

We took to the Wind and the surface of our World held few secrets from us.

And still, we lost aircraft, and crews. For the Wind is a harsh and fickle master.

And we who survived learned how to make bigger and safer aircraft, and learned to go further, and faster, and carry more goods with us.

And still we lost aircraft, and crews, for the Wind is a harsh and fickle master, and what He wants, He takes.

And we learned how to sail 'neath the Sea and return. And we were no longer at the mercy of the Wind, for we could sink 'neath the tempests and return when the Wind was calm.

And we lost submersibles, and crews, for the Sea is a harsh and fickle mistress.

And we who survived learned how to make bigger and safer submersibles. And we learned to better harness the Sea and carry more goods.

And still we lost submersibles, and crews, for the Sea is a harsh and fickle mistress, and what She wants, She takes.

And we learned to harness the Void, and return. And we were no longer at the mercy of the Sea, and we were no longer at the mercy of the Wind. And we were no longer limited to the World, which held few secrets from us. And we were no longer limited to the Coasts, nor to where our feet could take us.

And we lost spacecraft, and crews, for the Void is a harsh and fickle mistress, and what She wants, She takes.

And we lost spacecraft, and crews, for the Wind is jealous of the Void, and contrary in His spite. And what He wants, He takes.

And we lost spacecraft, and crews.

And we who survive shall learn to build bigger and safer spacecraft to carry more goods and go further, and faster. And we shall learn to better harness the Void, and to soothe the Wind so He will no longer be jealous of the Void.

And we will go to the Stars. Your descendants. My descendants. We will go to the Stars to build new lives for ourselves. And we will form new Nations, new Cities, and new Cultures.

And the Stars will hold few secrets from us.

Still, we will lose spacecraft, and crews, for the Void is a harsh and fickle mistress, and what She wants, She will take.

But we will no longer be limited.


<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Moose on 2003-02-01 21:39 ]</font>

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Moose on 2003-02-01 21:40 ]</font>

[img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

Beautiful. Thank you. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_cry.gif[/img]

__________________
Any day you wake up on "the right side of the dirt" is a good day.

T. Anderson

What a sad day 4 all of us!!I heard the Bad Astronomer himself be interviewed on Coast to Coast radio just a short time ago.I must say that I am shocked but not altogether surprised at this particular turn of events.However,I do think that the space program WILL go on.Because it must go on.