A Tribute - To Fallen Astronauts and Cosmonauts

Exploration - The Fire of the Human Spirit
A Tribute - To Fallen Astronauts and Cosmonauts

08.04.05


Eileen:
Those who dare to venture into an unexplored land will have revealed to them
things which were never known.
Those who venture out upon the sea will have revealed to them things never
heard.
But those who venture into the sky upon wings of silence...
Yes, the ethereal adventurers...
Theirs is the revelation of things never dreamed!
Such are the ways of explorers
And the surpassing way of the sky.

Vegas:
As we orbit the Earth today, we are able to watch the beauty of the Earth
and heavens unfurl before us as we undertake this journey. And we are
reminded that it is upon the completion of the journey and the arrival back
at the place from whence we came that we can say we truly know ourselves.
Sadly, there are those who have been challenged by the adventure of human
space exploration but who have not been able to experience that special
feeling that comes with returning home. These are the men and women who have
come before us, in courage, but who did not complete their journey of
exploration. It is to these explorers that we now take a moment to reflect
upon, and to whom we now pay tribute.

Steve:
The spirit of exploration is truly part of what it is to be human. Human
history has been a continual struggle from darkness toward light, a search
for knowledge and deeper understanding, a search for truth. Ever since our
distant ancestors ventured forth into the world, there has been an
insatiable curiosity to see what lies beyond the next hill, what lies beyond
the horizon. That is the fire of the human spirit that we all carry.

Through that spirit and through realizing its ambitions, the human race has
come to find its present place in the world. Previous generations went first
on foot, then on horseback. Later came the wooden sailing vessels that
opened new continents and new lands. Today we have aircraft and space craft.
We have shrunk the world in a way that early generations of explorers could
never have imagined.

Wendy:
Likewise, even if the future is equally unimaginable to us, we can be sure
that future generations will look upon our endeavors in space as we look
upon those early expeditions across the seas. To those generations, the need
to explore space will be as self evident as the need previous generations
felt to explore the Earth and the Seas.

As President Kennedy said of space exploration:

"Space is there and we're going to climb it, and the moon and planets are
there and new hopes for knowledge and peace are there. And, therefore, as we
set sail we ask God's blessing on the most hazardous and dangerous and
greatest adventure on which man has ever embarked."

"We choose to do these things ... not because they are easy, but because
they are hard."

And, certainly, space exploration is not easy, and there has been a human
price that has been paid. As we step out into this new frontier we find that
it is very unforgiving of our mistakes. The lives lost over thirty years ago
with the early steps taken by the crews of Apollo 1, Soyuz 1 and Soyuz 11
vehicles showed us that. The loss of the crew of Challenger reaffirmed the
need to be ever vigilant of the risks.

Charlie:
Tragically, two years ago, we came once more to realize that we had let our
guard down. We became lost in our own hubris and learned once more the
terrible price that must be paid for our failures. In that accident we not
only lost seven colleagues, we lost seven friends. Their families never
shared in their homecoming. Those seven were driven by the fire of the human
spirit within. They believed in space exploration. They knew the risks, but
they believed in what they were doing. They showed us that the fire of the
human spirit is insatiable. They knew that in order for a great people to do
great things, they must not be bridled by timidity.

John:
To the crew of Columbia, as well as the crews of Challenger, Apollo 1 and
Soyuz 1 and 11, and to those who have courageously given so much, we now
offer our enduring thanks. From you we will carry the human spirit out into
space, and we will continue the explorations you have begun. We will find
those new harbors that lie out in the stars and of which you dreamed. We do
this not just because we owe it to you, but we do it because we also share
your dream of a better world. We share your dream of coming to understand
ourselves and our place in this universe. And as we journey into space you
will be in our thoughts and will be deeply missed.

Soichi:
Previous paragraph repeated in Japanese.

Sergei:
Previous paragraph repeated in Russian.

Andy:
Not twice may any stand by the same stream,
Not twice possess the years that hasten on;
Something there was we looked on, loved, 'tis gone
Or stays but as the shadow of a dream.

Hands that we touched clasp ours no more, and eyes
That shone for us as stars withdrew their light;
Voices beloved pass out into the night;
The gift of yesterday, today denies.

Yet we must hold it for a deeper truth,
Nothing that is, but only that which seems
Shall find its dwelling in the place of dreams;
The soul's possession is eternal youth.

Swift flows the stream, but in it as it flows
The same unchanging stars are mirrored bright.
Swift fly the years, but heedless of their flight
The touch of time, nor love nor friendship knows.

Eileen:
And, in closing, for all our lost colleagues, we leave you with this prayer,
often spoken for those who have sacrificed themselves for all of us:

They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.



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Jacques :-)

www.spacepatches.info