Daily Prompt
Longing for Gravity
You are on a mission to Mars. Because of the length of of the journey, you will never be able to return to Earth. What about our blue planet will you miss the most?
There may be some who would happily set out on a one-way trip to Mars. It might even be colonised as repository for other nations’ unwanted citizens as Australia was. But I’m not one of the former, and so far I don’t qualify as one of the latter, owing to keeping my head down for 70 years. Although with the advent of our current PM, we can only pray that he doesn’t have a light-bulb moment and ship the old, the unemployed and the terminally ill to far-flung planets to ease the financial burden on his society of choice.
But as things stand, I have no intention of mouldering away, in my declining years, either stuck in a rocket-shaped tin can (however expensive) or traipsing about in a hostile environment, planning how to mess it up as thoroughly as we’ve already messed the one we were given.
So thank you for the thought, but no. I am not on a mission to Mars. My missionary days are long past. I shall continue to enjoy the real-time physical presence of my children and grandchildren, who will all, I’m sure, forgo the fame of being related to a Mars missionary in favour of my annual contributions to Christmas dinner and the odd stint of babysitting.
I shall also continue to read books in their civilised paper form, walk barefoot on the grass, swim in the ocean, smell genuine gardenias in summer and take photos of kangaroos having a kip. And when (inevitably) I die, I shall return to dust in one form or another, and not spin for all eternity as a grotty piece of inter-galactic flotsam.
http://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_prompt/longing-for-gravity/
helen meikle's scribblefest 
Enjoyable prose, why would we seek something other?
🙂
Damn. I thought I was already a piece (though maybe not grotty) of inter-galactic flotsam. Thanks for precipitating yet ANOTHER identity crisis! 😉
But these identity crises are make us Grow! Would I be so unkind as to deprive you of the opportunity?
Helen and you gals in the comments section? my heroes! ❤
🙂 🙂 🙂
Helen – do you mean what’s happening here in the US with the economy , is happening “down under?” If we start a “send to Mars” initiative, it will have to go on a bottle rocket.
I think our PM regards the American economy as iconic
I’d miss just about everything on our, probably unique in the universe, small blue planet. I just came back from a swim – our seasons are reversed. It was in the gorgeous olympic pool at our fabulous YMCA and it’s kept at @81% all year round – but it’s now time when a swim in the Gulf is called for. Here’s a commercial (dump it you want). You’ll learn a bit about me because it’s the Authors page on Amaxon.com. I’d love to have some readers and reviewers from down under:
I’m with you, Helen. The only reason I’d be on a rocket to Mars is if I’d been found nicking stuff from the stationery cupboard.
Even then – plastic bag over the head?
What a choice. No. I’m definitely remaining Earth bound. Staid, I know, but hey, as you say, it has its compensations.
I’d definitely stay as I’d be able to squat in some expensive pad near the sea that the rich astronauts had abandoned, and do the British version of what you’re doing! And we could Skype!
We could Skype anyway, come to that!
I’m too paranoid about my anonymity yet! Maybe one day x
Fair enough. Any time…