The Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff on January 28, 1986.
For the baby boomer generation, the question "Where were you when JFK was shot?" evokes a core memory. For Gen Xers, it's "Where were you when the Challenger exploded?" Nearly four decades later, most of us can still recall where we were when the tragic mission went terribly wrong.
Most of us were in classrooms. The space shuttle mission had been hyped in schools across the country for months, as high school teacher Christa McAuliffe had been chosen from 11,000 applicants to become the first civilian in space. McAuliffe had done countless interviews and been part of news and television specials showing how she was being trained for the mission, and by the time of the launch, she'd become a household name.
Seven astronauts, including teacher Christa McAuliffe, were killed in the Challenger explosion. NASA/Public Domain
On January 28, 1986, millions of children across the country were eagerly watching the live TV feed in their classrooms when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded mid-air, just 73 seconds after liftoff. Confusion followed by shock and horror set in as we realized that we'd just watched seven people die in real time—six astronauts, who held almost god-like status for kids in the 1980s, and a woman who could have been any of our favorite teachers.
I was in 5th grade. My teacher cried. Then she turned off the television and we just…went back to class.
Gen X is sometimes referred to as the forgotten generation—the latchkey kids raised by two working parents who learned to be independent as well as cynical and aloof due to benign neglect. But as a social media meme points out, the Challenger tragedy and aftermath serves as an example of why we are the way we are.
The meme shared by Gen X Only on Facebook reads, "If you ever wonder why Gen X is the way it is, remember that teachers hyped a rocket launch and astronauts that then exploded in front of us. No counseling, no hugs or reassurances. They just assigned more homework. And this is just a sample."
This explains some things about Gen X.
GenX Only | Facebook
Gen Xers in the comments then shared their memories of that day, and they do make one wonder how differently schools would respond if the same thing happened today. Mental health wasn't a big focus in schools in the 80s, and the idea that kids were traumatized by what they saw and might need some help processing it barely seemed like a blip on the radar.
"Saw it in my 4th grade class with my favorite teacher Ms.waters , I just remember my teacher crying and walking out of the classroom .I was super confused I remember that, I know what we just watched wasn't normal! and we went on with our day literally, no mention of it I don't remember at home or anything." – Stacey R.
"Yep, saw it live, then they turned off tv and went on with class. Not sure what the guidance counselors did in those days??!!" – Kim M.
"I'll never forget this.I was in Spanish class, watching.When it exploded, there was gasps and silent confusion....Silence for what felt like forever. Spanish teacher broke from her rule of Spanish only in class. She looked at us with tears rolling down her face and said, "I can't believe that just happened.....(turns off TV, wipes tears) please pull out your book and turn to page (whatever it was)".And that was that." – Kelli L.
"It was traumatic! The TV gets rolled in on its cart. We learn all about the average person on the flight, a teacher, I mean how cool you can be a teacher and go to space. Classroom is all a buzz as we count down with the TV 3, 2, 1! Then wham giant explosion, wait, hold up, did everyone just die? Everyone, even the teacher is in total shock, the TV is still on as we hear them say the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded, and there are no survivors. We all just sat in shock. I don't think it sank in for some of the kids what we had just witnessed. For those of us that understood it was a very strange day, a very strange few days. NOBODY talked about what we had witnessed. We just went through the motions of school, without any help to process it. We never watched any shuttle take off after that, and we used to watch all of them. When the TV got rolled in there wasn’t as much excitement as usual for the rest of the school year. And we all just moved on, because we didn't know what else to do, the adults just acted like it didn't happen." – Lori G.
"I was in 3rd grade...I remember watching it in class after spending all week doing special projects because an 'average' person who was a teacher was gonna get to go to space...it blew up and we thought there was a fireworks show because of how special this launch was hyped to be...And then we went about our day.." – David K.
Millennials had 9/11 as kids. Gen Z has seen school shooting after school shooting. Both Gen Z and Gen Alpha had the COVID pandemic onset as a core childhood memory.
But those younger generations have grown up with much more sensitivity and adult awareness when it comes to mental health issues. Teachers have more training in trauma and there's a better understanding that kids could be affected emotionally by witnessing something like the Challenger disaster. Some schools and classes held remembrances and memorials for the Challenger crew, planting trees in their honor and whatnot, which may have helped bring some closure to the event for some. But for many Gen X kids, all we remember was the horror of it happening and then a complete lack of any kind of processing of it—just a near-immediate moving on.
Was the unspoken "Life is tough, move on" message we received through that experience helpful or harmful to Gen Xers' development? Who knows. There's a fine line between traumatizing and toughening, and that line is likely different for each person. But it's interesting to think about how differently that event might be handled today with our greater grasp of how trauma works and knowing how weird it was to have so little acknowledgment of it at the time.
The Frenchman's monologue was absolutely spot on 
A court reporter taking notes.via
Depiction of Jesus Christ in Heaven.via
A photo of Santa Claus.via
A man sweating in his car.via
Many people—including 
If not for that darn silver....
Sadly, Lake Tahoe's proposals were overruled. 
National parks are the ultimate tourism magnets. 
Entire economies depend on a local national park. 
Dinosaur National Monument looks like a national park, but is it?
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."
This article originally appeared in May.