Silent Key

On the 28th of January 1986 Christa McAuliffe
Gazed in horror as the O-rings failed
And she died, and she died, and she died

For the next agonising two minutes
And forty-five long seconds
She called out the truth on a broken radio
I'm alive, I'm alive, I'm alive

It came as some surprise to realise that
As she lost everything
The world was revealed in a transmission so real
That she understood everything
You're still alive

Four thousand nautical miles as the crow flies away
A home-made ham radio
In the loft of a Hampshire family home
Came alive, came alive, came alive

And so the four year old amateur operator thus became
The only person to hear
Christa's last desperate communique
We're alive, we're alive, we're alive

It came as some surprise to realise
While he didn't catch everything
The world was revealed in a transmission so real
That he understood everything
You're still alive

And Christa said

The darkness up above
Led me on like unrequited love
While all the things I need
Were down here in the deep blue sea

At four years old I heard
The truth on my radio
So now I keep a moment's silence
For my Silent Key