Go For Launch

The flames alight under our star-bound vessel,
We slowly rise away from Earth’s embrace,
A final battle with gravity, we wrestle.

Ahead is only the vast, empty space
Which will be our domain for many years.
An epic journey for the human race.

The rumbling engines shake away the tears
We have shed, knowing we will never return.
In this capsule are six of my peers,

Breathing heavily while the engines burn,
Rocketing skyward. The start of our mission
Began when the atomic clock began to turn.

Can you hear this? Our first transmission?
We are off to fulfill mankind’s ambition.