Boston has the sky

I would arrive to class on a beautiful summer's morning ready to go. I would hop off my scooter, tie it up, and race into the building.

On this particular morning I found Nathan in the middle of the grassy area outside of the buildling. He was staring into the abyss, with a smile on his face a mile wide. I naturally looked up to see what he was staring at, but there was nothing there. I decided to call out to him and ask him what he was doing.

"Look, he said, Boston has the sky". "Um.....yes, that's the sky", I said. He kept staring. I walked into the building thinking his statement was bizarre. Later, he came into class and started talking about blue the sky. He seemed particularly amazed as he continued to talk. It was then that he told me he came from Beijing, and he had never seen the color of the sky before. I laughed, but he didn't, he insisted the sky over Beijing was a sour red and gray color, like a veil of smoke and as a child and as a young adult, he never had seen such a color before. The crystal clear blue of the endless sky and Boston's clear heavens abounding gave him such delight.

Several mornings after our sky talk, I found Nathan again, outside staring into the abyss. I stopped to stare into it with him. It was then, that I realized my student had given me something I didn't know I was grateful for; an appreciation for activism and regulation. Then, as I walked to the door to disappear into my classroom, I whispered a small thank you to the people who came before me who thought it was important to install regulations and laws on industry. I will never forgot my sky loving student, he gave me an appreciation for something I see almost every single day.