Starry Night

"Used to see stars up there,"
he says, pointing a wrinkled finger straight up.

Unsure what he means, the boy stares
just a while, at the sky, which is a uniform
purplish-gray.

"Now the only way is if you are in a plane or
something above the surface," the old man says.

A divine listener intervenes, and in the distance the boy hears an explosion.

The lights dim, and the stars twinkle.  Just for a moment.