Friday, January 28, 2011

SAFE IN THE ARMS OF GOD

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THE DAY DREAMS DIED

I stared in disbelief that day
As the shuttle Challenger was blown away
Ask the survivors, if you will
Was it worth that 74 second thrill?

Seven pioneers met their fate that day
And America, in unison, began to pray
Where was God?  What went wrong?
One dear lady wrote a song

The quest for Halley’s Comet for us to see
Is not worth the cost of seven lives to me
Please forgive me if I am wrong
But about this issue, I feel strong

Money could be better spent
If used to help the unfortunate
To solve our problems here on earth
Before we conquer the universe

Let us work together for all mankind
And leave this ugly mess behind
Believe me NASA, I feel your grief
But canceling your flights is a big relief

Don’t send any more to go and leave
Their family and friends below to grieve
What went wrong that fateful day?
We ask ourselves repeatedly

If God would answer just one prayer today
I’d pray the shuttle never went that day
But since it did, I can only pray
That all seven are in God’s arms today.

January 28, 1986…
Please dear God, help us come to grips…

By Darlene Cirinna
Written 2/2/86


I was at work that fateful day ~ my office was on the 7th floor of the State Building, downtown Orlando.  It was a cold day in Central Florida, but clear.  My co-workers and I knew we would have an excellent view of the launch from our office windows on such a beautiful day.  I wondered why NASA officials had not postponed the launch because of the freeze the night before.  It seemed like a bad wind had blown through my mind...I would not know until later why that thought bothered me so much.

Just before launch time, many of us gathered at windows to watch the shuttle launch, as we routinely did on launch days.  The lift off was the same as so many before.  I was ready to get back to work when I saw this:



When the shuttle exploded, we did not immediately understand what we had just witnessed with our own eyes.  A friend yelled..."SOMETHING IS WRONG!"  She kept saying it over and over.  That is how shocking it was to witness such a horrible sight.  Her husband worked for NASA...It was way too personal for her.  As the realization of what I had just witnessed finally sank into my mind, I was stunned into silence as tears slowly slid down my face.

I will never forget that day.  It has been 25 years today.  The vision of the tragedy in the sky will be burned in my brain forever.  The balance of the day was spent in a numb world inside my brain.  The white smoke in the sky took it's time drifting away ~ a reminder of seven lost souls each time I looked skyward...  People were unusually quiet as they went about their business.  I saw many other people glance to the sky through out the afternoon.  Sadness was registered on faces everywhere. 

I wrote the poem a few short days after the shuttle disaster.  It took me 24 long years before I shared it with anyone except for one other person who is long dead ~ 25 years and it still makes me cry to remember.  But today, I want to remember the seven people who died that day.



SAFE IN THE ARMS OF GOD




8 comments:

  1. What a beautiful poem for such a tragic day. I remember it vividly also. I was a senior in high school at the time and we were allowed to watch the launch at school. It was shocking and unforgettable and extremely sad.

    Kathy
    http://www.thetruckerswife.com/

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  2. Thank you, Kathy. I think that those who saw it the instant it happened will always have a somewhat different memory than others around the world who witnessed on TV. It IS extremely sad!

    Gain...thank you.

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  3. ((( DA-BOO )))
    A TRULY HEARTFELT OUTPOURING OF POETRY!
    I TOO REMEMBER THAT DAY ...
    I WORKED AT THE KSC FIRE DEPARTMENT. WE NEVER THOUGHT THAT THE LCC WOULD GIVE THE GO AHEAD TO LAUNCH, THEY DID AND WE WONDERED WHY ...
    I DID IMMEDIATELY KNOW THAT THE SHUTTLE HAD EXPLODED AS PART OF OUR JOB WAS THE SHALLOW WATER RESCUE -WITH THE P.J.s OUT OF PATRICK DOING THE DEEP WATER RESCUE - THEY WENT UP AS WE STAYED GROUNDED. SOME OF THE MEDICAL PERSONNEL STILL WORKING AT THE SPACE CENTER REMEMBERED THE TRAGIC APOLLO LAUNCH PAD FIRE AND IT BROUGHT BACK HORRORS FOR THEM AS I TALKED TO THEM. THAT FATEFUL DAY THE CENTER WAS IN HYSTERIA AND BASICALLY SHUT DOWN AS EVERY VIAL OF SEDATIVE WAS DISPENSED. SAFETY CERTAINLY CHANGED AFTER THAT DAY, YET WE THAT WORKED THERE ALWAYS KNEW IN THE BACK OF OUR MINDS THAT THIS WAS INEVITABLE. OH, I WAS YOUNG THOSE 25 YEARS AGO ... AND THOUGHT TO BE BRAVE AND INVINCIBLE . . . NO, TRUE BRAVERY HAS SHOWN ITS FACE MANY, MANY TIMES IN HISTORY AND WILL AGAIN AS WE, AN ORDINARY PEOPLE,, TRY TO REACH FOR THE EXTRA-ORDINARY THROUGH DREAMS AND AMBITIONS. PEACE TO ALL WHO BECOME THE BRAVE BEFORE THEIR TIME, A DAILY EVENT AS IT SEEMS.
    BIGBOOBEAR

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  4. (((BIGBOOBEAR))) Wow..I didn't know you were working there at that time. I can't even imagine how the people who worked at KSC could bear what they witnessed. It was so bad. Since you mentioned the Apollo fire....I knew a nurse who was working there when that happened. She told me about that whole tragedy. It hurt her so much that she left and got another job.

    I'm so happy to know that you read my blog. This is the only place I am blogging now. Glad you found me. I love you...as always...

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  5. This is so lovely, Darlene! I also remember that day. It was so shocking and awful--still is and so incredibly sad. Your poem is beautiful and heartfelt!

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  6. Thanks Marian. Some days will live on in infamy for different people. This is one of those days that I will never forget.

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  7. I remember that day, too. I was home from school that day watching The Price is Right when they interrupted with the tragic news. That whole day is right up there with 9/11. What a tragedy. And I agree with you that the money is better spent taking care of things down here on Earth before we spend it on space exploration. There are SO many problems to take care of down here first. An excellent and touching write Da-BooLa :)

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  8. (((Tra Boola))) I have always felt that way. We have families in need, a nation in financial crisis and NASA will still be making 3 more flights. IDK...maybe they are payloads or under contract... I just feel like the welfare of a human being is more important than exploration of space. Some disagree, but I'm as entitled to my opinion as the next person. IMHO...

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