To touch the face of God
Thirty years ago this morning, the space shuttle Challenger exploded. I happened to be in a car and heard the news on the radio. It wasn't until hours later that I saw the footage.
I was not a fan of President Reagan, but he had some leadership skills that I've come to admire. The man knew how to deliver a speech, as we might expect from someone who made his living as an actor before becoming a politician. He was also blessed with some wonderful speech writers, like Peggy Noonan, who wrote the speech that he delivered after the loss of the Challenger.
The whole text of the speech can be found here. It's a masterful work from the beginning to the end. He talks directly to the family members of the crew and the other NASA workers. He talks to the nation's schoolchildren, who would have been watching when the first civilian teacher in space was lost. He talks to the nation, with stirring words about exploration and the continuation of what's been started.
