Rocket (Notevember 2020, #16)

Ten
Safety first
Lean back
Focus
Remember the procedures
Check all the gauges
Double-check the harness
Triple-check your crewmates
Everything in its place
Everyone in their seat
Everywhere another item crossed off the list

Nine
Breathe
You are ready
You have trained for this
For so long
So long, Earth
Not goodbye, Moon
This is where you should be
Everyone is watching
And soon you will be watching half of everyone at once

Eight
Trust
In the machinery
In your teammates
In the experts
In yourself
Someone made the judgement
That you are the best of the best
Otherwise you wouldn’t be here, would you?

Seven
Don’t think
About the fact that you need to pee
To eat
To withstand forces
The human body were not made to handle
Just handle the here and now
Mind over matter

Six
Time is relative
It’s already slowing down
A little too soon, isn’t it?
A little too much, don’t you think?
A little becoming a lot
Soon the vast nothing will dwarf the giant something

Five
Fingers white
Knuckles whiter
Palm sweaty
Forehead wrinkled
Breath steady

Four
North, south, east, west
Air, water, fire, earth
Not out there
Only depth, width, length, time

Three
Where it usually starts
None of this excruciating wait
Just a quick count to get to the point

Two
Eyes open
Nostrils flaring

One
Fire below