They were designed to survive near vacuum, extreme cold, heat,
And the ubiquitous Martian red dust storms

They were expected to perform flawlessly until they failed
Find the calculated mean time to failure of one or more critical components

The titanium module assembly fractured after 907 thermal cycles
Very small dust particles entered the housing and caused two bushings to seize

She was stuck in the sand, could not align her panels
Slowly dying, unable to communicate, she dreamed

The Martian Sun was small and dim, the winds blew orange sand.
Faithful, she took pictures of dust devils, of sunsets, of subliming ice

Her companion could not be sent to her aid – he was too far removed
After a while they stopped trying to contact her, they had lost their Spirit

They were together for six years.  Everyone gave them three months.
Forlorn, squeaking badly, he was alone now, his broken wheels scattering pebbles

Someday he would visit her, rescue her, he dreamed she would
awaken and once again join him in marvelous discoveries,

Finding everything, following evidence of water
Alone together on their wonderful new world