“When I was a little girl like you, I went up in Sputnik number two“

Yes, I was about ten when I wrote this wonderful poem. While the poem lacks a “certain amount” of professionalism, my dream was real.

Thanks to my dad, I was a stargazer. We’d sit on our front porch in the middle of town, and in spite of some light clutter, he’d point out the constellations.

When the Russians launched Sputnik II, I was equally mesmerized and traumatized.

Mesmerized by the sheer idea of launching off Earth, and traumatized by the fact there was a little doggie in the capsule. Laika, the stray husky/spitz mix, would die an unpleasant death not long after launch. That fact haunts me to this day.

My desire, however, to be launched into space, was not quelled! I often dreamed of being an astronaut*flying past the moon, Mars, and straight into Saturn’s rings.

*A debilitating predisposition to motion sickness, ended that dream.

I never lost track of my bucket list, however; to see a live launch at Cape Canaveral. I got to live that dream on January 15, with SpaceX’s powerful Falcon Heavy rocket with a classified military payload launch from the Kennedy Space Center at 5:56 pm.

Driving from Georgia to visit my best friend in Melbourne Beach, my dear husband, who never professed a desire to drive at the Indy 500, sped down I-95 in order to let me achieve # 1 on my Bucket List. We made it to another dear friend’s balcony, overlooking the Atlantic, with minutes to spare!

The event was beyond expectation, even to my husband who didn’t quite understand the significance of my desire. The sun was just setting as the pad on Cape Canaveral lit the sky. We followed the satellite’s trajectory across a clear sky as it raced into outer space. That wasn’t the end of our excitement, however.

Watching the two boosters return to their launch pad was equally thrilling. Maybe more!

So, thank you, Mike, Scott, and Diana for one of the best days of my life.

Next thing on my bucket list is to see astronauts land on Mars. Considering I’m almost 76, they need to speed it up!

Since I’m probably not going to be on the spaceship to Mars, I’ll settle for my day job. Writing mysteries.