The Sky

Alright, now I've done it.  I've made my son look like a fool at school.  Not cool.  Mom's don't rule.  And, that's enough of that...  Good lord, I'm getting off topic in the first sentence.

Ok, so here's glimpse into one of the many fascinating conversations Breckin and I have had in the car on the way home from preschool.  Remember that car commercial where the dad is seatbelting his little girl in the back and she's blabbering on about ponies and glitter and he walks around the car to get in and she's still talking and he just smiles and nods and inserts a "uh-huh" every now and then?  That's my daily life.  If you ever want some entertainment- or vouch for my silly anecdotes- ride in a car with Breckin.  He talks nonstop about anything and everything and if it gets too silent, he makes a weird noise and laughs. 

Again, I digress.  So, a while back, Breckin started asking about the sky. 

Breckin:  Mommy, does the sky start at the tops of our heads, at the top of the trees, or at the top of the skyscrapers?

I hate these kind of questions because there's not really an answer and I have to think fast and chances are, I'll be wrong.  And, to every question Breckin asks, he follows it with Really?  Is that a yes?  Is that for real?  Like he knows I'm BSing but if he just asks enough, it'll make it real.

Me:  Well, see how you can see the sky way up there?  points to the overcast
Breckin:  Yep.  But, where does it start?
Me:  I think it starts all around us down here but we just can't see it.  I'm thinking it's too early to bust out the word atmosphere but I can't think of a better way to explain the sky
Breckin:  So does it start at the top of Tiki's head?
Me:  It kinda just starts from the ground up and goes as far as you can see up there.  We just call the place where the clouds are the sky cause no one really thinks about the sky around us.
Breckin:  So, I walk through the sky every day?  Chase said we can't walk on sky.

Oh cripes.  Now we're getting into metaphysical stuff and I really don't want to explain that.

Me:  Well, we aren't walking on the sky, we are walking on the ground but the sky is everywhere. 
Breckin:  For reals?
Me:  Yep.
Breckin:  Is that true?
Me:  Yes.
Breckin:  Is that yes?
Me:  That's a yes, buddy.

Ok, fast forward to yesterday at school.  The kids are playing some stretching game out in the field while waiting for their turn on the slip N slide.  Miss Suzi (thank God I have a good relationship with her and she tells me stories about Breckin every day) says "Reach down to the ground."  Ok, "Reach up to the sky."

All the kids reach their arms up as high as they can and stand on their tip toes to reach into the nothingness of sky.  Not Breckin.  He sticks his arms straight out, winds them around in circles, and swoops them down to his toes.  The other kids laugh, Miss Suzi tells him to pay attention and reach up to the sky.  He says "Mommy says the sky is all around us so I'm reaching all around me."

Mommy forgot to tell him to just reach up high when he's told but take that, Miss Suzi.  Next time you'll have to get creative and tell them to reach up to the clouds.  I promise I won't tell him about low level fog in the mornings....