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Back Stargazing for Beginners Save as PDF
Contents ( 64)
  1. A Letter from the Author
  2. ONE
  3. TWO
  4. THREE
  5. FOUR
  6. FIVE
  7. SIX
  8. SEVEN
  9. EIGHT
  10. NINE
  11. TEN
  12. ELEVEN
  13. TWELVE
  14. THIRTEEN
  15. FOURTEEN
  16. FIFTEEN
  17. SIXTEEN
  18. SEVENTEEN
  19. EIGHTEEN
  20. NINETEEN
  21. TWENTY
  22. TWENTY-ONE
  23. TWENTY-TWO
  24. TWENTY-THREE
  25. TWENTY-FOUR
  26. TWENTY-FIVE
  27. TWENTY-SIX
  28. TWENTY-SEVEN
  29. TWENTY-EIGHT
  30. TWENTY-NINE
  31. THIRTY
  32. THIRTY-ONE
  33. THIRTY-TWO
  34. THIRTY-THREE
  35. THIRTY-FOUR
  36. THIRTY-FIVE
  37. THIRTY-SIX
  38. THIRTY-SEVEN
  39. THIRTY-EIGHT
  40. THIRTY-NINE
  41. FORTY
  42. FORTY-ONE
  43. FORTY-TWO
  44. FORTY-THREE
  45. FORTY-FOUR
  46. FORTY-FIVE
  47. FORTY-SIX
  48. FORTY-SEVEN
  49. FORTY-EIGHT
  50. FORTY-NINE
  51. FIFTY
  52. FIFTY-ONE
  53. FIFTY-TWO
  54. FIFTY-THREE
  55. FIFTY-FOUR
  56. FIFTY-FIVE
  57. FIFTY-SIX
  58. FIFTY-SEVEN
  59. FIFTY-EIGHT
  60. FIFTY-NINE
  61. SIXTY
  62. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  63. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  64. ONE

There is a new burst of clapping and all eyes turn towards me. I stand up and take a deep breath. I feel slightly dizzy, but I make myself walk towards the microphone. As I cross the stage, I tell myself that today might have started disastrously, but I’m here and I’m ready for this. All I have to do is stay calm, speak loudly and clearly, and remember every single word of my speech. I clutch my cards in my hand. I know I don’t need them, but I have to hold them, just in case.

I reach the microphone.

This is it.

FIFTY-THREE

I stare out at the audience and the buzzer sounds. The cards shake in my hands and Professor Hayes smiles and nods encouragingly. I glance at my first card, reassure myself that I know the words, then look back up. ‘To me, space means freedom,’ I say, and I hear my shaky voice echo round the hall, ‘because space exploration gives us the chance to leave planet Earth to explore the wonders of the universe.’ I take a breath, and that’s when I see someone slip into the back of the hall; it’s a woman with white-blonde dreads, loose trousers and a rucksack slung over her shoulder. She sees me on the stage and a smile spreads across her face.

And, just like that, Mum steps back into my life.

In an instant, anger and hurt sweep through me and I’m taken back to the moment she rang from the plane. But my heart lifts too. It’s just so good to see her. My fingers tighten on the cards that I know I don’t need, and I force myself to carry on. ‘Scientists believe that a planet capable of supporting life might be orbiting Alpha Centauri B, and that within centuries we may visit that planet …’ My voice trails off. I feel my heart thudding in my chest. Somewhere in the audience there is a cough, followed by a whisper.

I look back at the words written on the cards. With sudden and total clarity, I see that my description of space as my ultimate escape is completely wrong.

‘Sorry,’ I say, shaking my head, ‘but I can’t do this speech … The words on these cards aren’t true.’ My voice is a whisper, but the microphone still manages to pick it up. ‘I mean, they are true, but they don’t come close to explaining what space really means to me.’

Now the silence in the hall is complete. I look at my precious cards that have taken me weeks to write and memorise, then I put them down on the floor. My heart beats hard in my chest as I stand back up and stare out across the audience. Several seconds tick by and my heart pounds and my skin prickles. Can I do this? Can I show them who I really am?

I know I can.

I take Grandad’s bottle of rocket fuel out of my pocket and pull out the tiny cork. I lift the bottle to my lips and down the contents in one gulp. It’s sweet and spicy. I put the bottle back in my pocket and my now empty hand curls into a fist.