In the 1981 we were taken by a teacher and sat in a small hot room and watched the first shuttle countdown on TV. The room was too hot and we didn’t see the launch because it happened during the European night. It was a massive let down.

Watching the news the following day there was nothing we couldn’t build. Sci-fi seemed to be possible and real.

A few years later I was given a copy of this.

Pages and pages of countdown instructions, specs and plans. Again, my mind exploded with the possibilities. Whenever I see complexity I know that it’s possible to get it in order. After all, others have done it before.

I didn’t see a launch or witness a landing; I looked into it, but the timing was never right. However, the shuttle showed what was possible and gave hope in the middle of the Cold War.

I’ll miss it.

But more than anything I’ll miss being able to share the hope with my kids.

Space Shuttle: The complete missions — by Nature Video – YouTube.