The sky is older than all of us. Older than borders. Older than flags. Older than the loud speeches of those who think they own the earth. Every night it watches. Tonight, the sky is restless. Not because of clouds. Not because of rain. Because of fire.

Flashes rise from the ground like angry questions. Metal birds scream through the darkness. The sky hears them first. Before the people below understand. Boom. Another light. Another explosion. The sky sighs.

It has seen this before. Long ago. Very long ago. When kings absurdly thought that they owned the world, it was all theirs. When armies marched ahead with drums and flags. When cities were gutted, and children screamed the same way they scream today.

Nothing much has changed. Only the machines and technology have. The sky watches buildings fall. Walls collapse like old lies, finally too heavy to stand. Dust scrambles upward. Trying to touch the sky.

A child somewhere in a school is drawing clouds in a notebook. A small blue sky with........

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