inessential by Brent Simmons

Sentimental sap

Science fiction brings out the sentimental sap in me.

I was watching a TV show last night. The folks on the ship had been away from Earth—lost in space and time—fighting the bad guys. Things looked bleak. Except when they looked worse than bleak.

But somehow—with heart and brains, sheer pluck, and the aid of crack Hollywood scriptwriters—they triumphed!

As the ship returns to Earth they see it in the viewscreen. Big and blue and beautiful, it looks like home.

But they’re not sure it’s their Earth in their time yet, until the radio operator says, “Lunar Colony One, orbital platforms, San Francisco—they’re all calling in, sir.”

And, no exaggeration, my eyes well up with water.

Don’t even try to watch Blade Runner with me. I lose it at the end when Roy Baty deactivates. Every time.