anniversary
of Apollo 11–
losing the remote

 

 

 

(Jack Stamm Award, Finalist, 2004)

Published by

Helen Buckingham

Helen Buckingham lives in Wells, UK. Her work appears regularly in journals and anthologies including: Frogpond, The Heron's Nest, Modern Haiku, Haiku in English: The First Hundred Years (W.W. Norton, 2013) and nada annunaad: an anthology of contemporary world haiku (Vishwakarma Publications, 2016). She won first prize in the Martin Lucas Award, 2016. Her most recent collection is the Touchstone Award shortlisted sanguinella (Red Moon Press, 2017).

7 thoughts on “”

  1. Yes, a lot of humour in this one, and in reality there had to be, as the astronauts weren't exactly expected to get back alive. President Nixon had his memorial speech ready to hand declaring their deaths.

    *

    escape velocity
    the moon pulls oceans
    behind Apollo 11

    Alan Summers
    “Rocket Dreams” Commission 2007
    Read/performed U.K. National Poetry Day October 4th 2007 with Space Historian Piers Bizony and NASA images, as part of World Space Week

    Apollo 11 facts: 17 things you may not know about the first Moon Landing
    Facts about Apollo 11 and the Moon Landing; from how the astronauts went toilet to Neil Armstrong's promise to his nan and the plan if they were stranded

    Did a felt-tip save their lives?

    "Yes! Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins nearly didn’t make it home when a switch broke. The circuit breaker that activated the ascent engine – ie what got them off the Moon – broke. Aldrin came up with a great solution and used his felt-tip pen to get inside and flick the switch."
    British Radio Times quote

    I've actually touched a remarkable scale model accurate to 100% and I could have pushed a pencil through it, it was so fragile. How did they do it, meeting so many obstacles?

    I'm not even sure there was such a thing as a remote TV gadget when I first saw it, unless my parents said get up and change the channel! :-)

    Alan

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  2. Thanks Alan….yeh, I watched it live and there were definitely no remote controls back then, in the UK at least. I was talking about the anniversary itself, becoming increasingly disillusioned with each one and preferring to cling to the original memory…..though I'll admit this recent set of celebrations has left me feeling pretty emotional.

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    1. The National Geographic drama-documentary of the Mars landing was interesting though!

      stargazers
      a glimpse of Mars along
      the streets of Hull

      Alan Summers
      Publication Credit: Blithe Spirit 26.2 (Summer 2016)

      I'm sure you'll get the musical reference too! :-)

      Reply

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