During my visit to Orlando, Florida in 2007, I was lucky enough to watch the space shuttle launch at the Kennedy Space Centre. Now I love Science fiction and the thought of actually seeing the space shuttle take off and head off to space was an opportunity I couldn't miss.
Now the pictures below I admit are not my best, but you can see the large number of people who turned up to see the launch. You also see shots of the launch as the shuttle heads into space towards the international space station. Although the luanch was over in a matter of minutes ( and took us over an hour to get there) I thought it was worth the trip.
If you are ever in Orlando and there is a schedule launch, drive up and watch it live. The excitement felt in the crowd, the roar of the engines as it heads into the atmosphere and the wonder of seeing something quite remarkable is worth the the hour drive it takes.
All pictures taken by Trojan Gayle
I hope to see it someday! I've had friends who have been and they say it is amazing.
ReplyDeleteSo to explain the relationship between my photo and the quote. (this is going to be a long one)
The photo is from my friends apartment window, I posted some from the same series a while back. My friend is an interesting person. She was abused as a child, grew up and was abused by her boyfriends. She in turn ended up abusing her own children, who at one point were taken away from her. She abused drugs, including heroin for a while, and her cheeks wore the broken capillaries that often accompany heavy drinking. Most of this happened in her twenties and thirties.
By the time we moved in next door to her (you can see our yellow apartment building in the photo) she had been clean & sober for many years and was well into her forties. She had been through years and years of therapy. She didn't work much, instead volunteered around town. She took care of the apartment grounds, creating beautiful landscapes, in return for cheap rent. She is one of the most amazing and beautiful person's I've ever met. Our morning talks over coffee helped shape me in more ways than I can really relate.
I was struggling to raise a child who is autistic, but had been told repeatedly that she was not. So I thought I had to discipline her behaviors away. I came very close to being an abusive mother and it was the scariest place I've ever been. Talking with Laurie really helped me see the effects that abuse can have on a person and her understanding, non-judgmental view was therapeutic and eye opening.
We only lived in Vermont for a year and a half. I truly believe that God sent us there for a purpose and a big part of that purpose was to have Laurie as our neighbor. She is unconventional to say the least. Some might even call her a bit "mad", but to me she is one of the most beautiful creatures ever to grace our planet. The world is a better place because Laurie exists in the world.
I hope that explains the quote/photo combination for you. You get the exclusive scoop. :)
Readying your response makes me feel most honoured and I am so glad that I asked the question.
ReplyDeleteThank for your response and sharing your experiences and the meaning behind the post. You seemed to have found the place where you are meant to be and sometimes the people who are sent to help us comes in strange packages. I have just spoken to my colleague about your response and both agree that learning from other people’s experience through dialogue is very important and something that should be encouraged for us all.
I have never encountered any one with autism before, but from what little I know, you must face some unique challenges. Thanks again for your blog and thanks again for sharing you. Have a great day.
Mate, that was a great opportunity. It looks awesome!. Wish I was there.
ReplyDeleteGreat photos!
It was an amazing and thrilling experiance. Nothing better than seeing the real thing!
ReplyDeleteOOOH, we've been there, we had a brilliant day, JJ was really into space at the time, so it was even more special, the sheer size of the space ships was daunting...
ReplyDeletesadly we didn't see a launch, but one year we were there when the space ship re-entered the atmosphere and the huge sonic booms were heard for miles, it was like a bomb going off in the back yard...
great pics!