Today was my day to announce the stardate! I was going to be on the PBX and everyone would here me. You only had a turn every three years and had to be 21yo, so this was my first. There would be a commemorative photo and a news post.
My jumpsuit was clean and I had repaired the small tear on the lapel. My hair was buzzed slick and bald and my grav boots were high polished green. I looked good.
I walked out of my cubby and into the common hall. It was busy and tight. I hoped for no foul odors on my suit. Some recognized me and called my name and that made me feel even more special. I was floating, well I could have been floating, had my grav boots failed.
The PBX office was just down the block, so I arrived with time to spare and hope to meet a broadcaster or politician. It was said they might have food as well. Food! It would be regular food, not manufactured. I hoped for the stuff called fruit.
Inside, I was shuttled from person to person, this a normal daily event for decades to them. I was seated in the green room and looked around. I spied tiny red things on a plate and went to them. There was no scent, but I ate one. Delicious! Sweet and exotic! I grabbed another one and ate it too and then put a few in my pocket for treats to share with friends.
The time had come. The escorts gently pushed me along to the broadcast stage and then I was on.
"Welcome to SpacePod 26917! The stardate is 2087, June 23 and the time is 1935! Thank you!" I stood still and wondered why no one came for me. I looked around and their eyes were plastered outside Podworld. The sky was bright blue.
I also began to gape at the beauty of the new light. It was blindingly bright and my eyes couldn't adapt yet. It looked like Earth to me, not the planet, but the environment.
How would we love with this new environment and how did we get to it? Was this an accident or was this planned?
The shutters began to descend and, in unison, we dropped down with them to see the lat of the brightness. Now we were blind... temporarily, I hoped, but my eyes were like fireworks exploding.
No one moved until the lights were raised in the city so we could begin to see again. It was painful, but we all adapted eventually.
***
No one would ever forget the date I did the announcement. They still stopped me in the halls... Hey, you were the one who announced on the day the light was bright! I would nod and thank them. What else could I do?
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