On a cold January morning 30 yrs ago today I sat in my 7th grade science class, when our principal made an unforgettable announcement: "The Space Shuttle blew up." (That phrase still stings 30 years later or whenever it bubbles up in my memories.)
As I sat there stunned at my desk, I heard someone ask, "Was this the one with the teacher?" And me being the space nerd that I am, I said "Yes it was." I knew what this shuttle mission was about and I knew what this disaster meant: high school teacher Christa McAuliffe was the first civilian on board a shuttle & would be remembered as never being able to accomplish her mission.
So almost exactly a year after I lost my paternal grandmother, I felt loss again but this time shared with millions of fellow Americans. It would be another 15 years before another Space Shuttle disaster would occur, but the Challenger explosion still stands as a significant blip on my life's radar and one that will last forever.
