Sarah was shocked and thought she must be dreaming. But, she knew this wasn’t a dream. This was real! She followed Rusty downstairs and out of the house and into the barn. She pulled the blanket off the rocket, pushed it outside, and climbed in. Rusty explained the controls to Sarah and said his goodbyes. He did not have any details of the mission, but said the rocket would know where to go.
Sarah held her breath and pushed the launch button. The rocket fired right up and slowly lifted off. As it accelerated, she could feel herself squeezed back into the chair. The rocket shook so violently she was afraid it would fall apart. After an exciting two minutes, she was in space.
Sarah expected things to be floating around her in outer space. However, there were no effects of weightlessness, since the rocket continued to accelerate. Looking back, the earth was getting smaller and smaller. Sarah marveled at the moon and its beautiful and desolate craters as she flew by. It was so bright and gigantic at this close distance.
The rocket kept going faster and faster. The earth was shrinking by the second. She whizzed past Mars, the red planet and gazed at the enormity of Jupiter. Then Saturn and its mesmerizing rings. She barely noticed Neptune and Uranus as she sped past them and out of the solar system.
It seemed so dark way out in space. There were so many more stars to see than on earth. Soon, the entire Milky Way galaxy was in view with its spiraling arms dancing full of millions of stars. It became even lonelier and darker once the rocket left the galaxy. Sarah even started to feel a bit sad. She decided to ignore those feelings. This was her dream. It was so exciting to be travelling in real outer space. She had gone further than anyone on earth ever had.
So many more things came into view. There were all kinds of different galaxies, shaped like giant spinning discs, hats, bananas, boats, and balls. The universe abounded with many different colors of giant gas clouds and pulsating lights. Sarah wondered at the awesome power of a black hole as it pulled in the light and dust from surrounding stars.
She was so far away from home now. She started feeling a deep loneliness. She was now past the most ancient and distant of galaxies. It became very dark as they all faded away from view. She wondered what her mission was. Who would contact her? Would she ever go back?
Then, up ahead, was a small shimmering light. As she approached it, it appeared as though there was some kind of barrier. The light was warped and blurry. As her rocket approached, it slowed down until it finally stopped right in front of the strange barrier.
As Sarah looked deeper into it, she could see visions of her family and friends back home. She wished she could touch them. She wished somebody would talk to her right now. Everything was so fuzzy and confusing.
Suddenly, a hole opened up in front of her. It pulled her and the rocket inside. Surrounded by darkness, Sarah could hear no sound and see no light. Her cheeks felt cold and wet. Then a soft voice called, “Sarah...Sarah...Hello? Sarah?”
From out of the darkness, her eyes adjusted to see her friend Melissa who was calling her name. Her dog Rusty was there too, licking her face. Sarah found herself lying down on the cool soft grass in front of her house. It felt so good to see another person and feel the warm sun on her body.
She got up and gave Melissa and Rusty a big hug. Melissa let Sarah know it was time for lunch. They sat down at the picnic table and Sarah enjoyed the best ribs and corn she ever had in her entire life.
Melissa asked, “Where did you go?”
Sarah being surprised asked back, “What do you mean? Wasn’t I here?”
Melissa laughed, “Of course you were. I mean mentally, where did you go? You were totally in outer space.”
Sarah softly replied, “Yes I was Melissa. Yes I was.”
THE END
(of this book, but not the stories)
Willakaville Page 10