THE MISSING A
Copyright © Geoff Allnutt (The Speech Painter) 1999

 

 

"That's one small step for man one giant leap for mankind"
makes no sense it should have been "That's one small step for a man..."

A giant rocket 300 feet tall
made of new metal alloys
fitted together with a precision
better than the finest wristwatch
on an untried mission
to an unknown celestial body
to do all this and do it first
we must be bold

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
ignition
we have lift off
7.5 million pounds of pumping thrust
in trajectory ejaculation
rocket man is coming
"the clock is running"
the seeds of mankind's exploration
are leaving bulging mother
for virgin daughter's barren flesh
A is for Apollo
A is for apple - forbidden fruit
god's own playground
stolen by astronauts
in we-can-go-anywhere spacesuits
clean-cut radicals
so hip it hurts
touch down gently
through clouds of dust
"the eagle has landed"
in god we trust
"we come in peace for all mankind"
human conquest
impregnation
star sailors aground
on a sea of tranquillity
explorers of a new world
secure for history
the lunar modules twin berth
delivers modern Adam
A is for Armstrong
umbilicaly attached by TV signal
we watch the faltering steps
infants of a new beginning
the whole world holds its breath
mankind reborn in his own image
terra firma with 1/ 6th G
"footprints on the sand of time"
for all eternity 1
astonished parents all
gaze in wonder and in awe
as Armstrong swallows the missing A
spaced out, far out, cosmic
600 million turn on, tune in
to witness the ultimate trip
"that's one small step for man
one giant leap for mankind"
a is for Armstrong, first man
and Aldrin close behind
magnificent desolation
eden's somewhere else
kicking up dust on the nearest planet
so the earth could find itself
A is for America
star spangled splendour
planted and unfurled
on the edge of human experience
a series of experiments
bubble helmet space cadets
skip across the moonscape
intense observations
mind-blowing moments
perfect arcs, ethereal visions
particle sprays
silver-suited astral surfers
go about their day
the lunar day lasts a month
but it's no time to be wasted
inner space is not revealed
the surface is explored
travellers with back packs
bag boxes of rocks
from a tranquil shore
the heavenly bodies
star- studded movie
stark scenery
unspoilt serenity
played out in the spotlight
of the sun's bright glare
A is for the dawn of Aquarius
air
A is for ascension
time to join their right hand man
leaving the junked used gear
of a finished mission
like discarded toys
in an adolescents bedroom
a regrouped trinity
heading for comedown
a stolen glimpse vaporised
in re-entry burn
hurtling descent into
A is for aqua
splashdown
the age of Pisces, a return 2
pacific fish quarantined
in world wide aquarium
lunar specimens
can you answer
any questions
an image on the front of Time
pushing at the grand design
alpha- bright stars
bold and first
slaking, burning
searching thirst
the stop watch running
calculates
elapsed time
and then narrates
the message engraved
in gold Omega case
"to mark mans conquest of space
with time, through time, on time"
almighty technology
saviour, foe
leaving home
way to go
mission accomplished
trip begun
"which is
which was
which is to come"

 

Copyright © Geoff Allnutt (The Speech Painter) 1999