A Dark Voyage

Somewhere, beyond our planet, a golden disk floats silently into interstellar space. This disk carries human experience. Out drifting in space is our music, our photographs, our languages, and our sounds. It rests on Voyager 1, a space probe launched in 1977, to explore and study space beyond our solar system. Out in a cold, dark vacuum, with little to erode it, Voyager 1 pushes through space in seemingly endless travel. With three radioisotope thermoelectric generators, heat is made into electricity from the decay of plutonium-238, and Voyager is able to trudge through the challenges of harsh space. Voyager 1 is a symbol of hope. It holds our existence, alone, to a relentless void. Searching, studying, and persevering even against the unfavorable odds of deep space. It gives me hope, not only for mankind, but for my own life. Time and time again I am faced with hardship, yet time and time again I find I have made it to the other side. My ability to trudge through darkness is undeniably difficult, but it is there. My perseverance is what will take me through high school, through college, and eventually to my dreams of seeing the stars.