Therightwordscameonedayinlatespring.The
yawning teacher shuffled in, carrying heavy-looking bags
andherdailycupofhorrible-smellingbrownliquid.After
thefirstgroupofstudentsarrived,itwascleartheywere
beginning new lessons. Normally, new subjects were
filled with different words she didn’t understand, and
Nimbuswoulddespairatthelearningshewasmissing.
But“Physics”wasdifferent.Itsoundedinteresting,and
Nimbus leaned forward eagerly on her perch.
“Physics”wasfilledwithwordsthatwerefamiliar,
like push, force, pull, down, air, up, action and reac-
tion.Movementsandideaswentwiththesoundsin
new ways, teaching Nimbus what it was that finally
changed everything. It took several class periods with
thesamelessonon“SimpleMachines”forthewords
and motions to make sense. But it wasn’t new! She had
seen them somewhere. Memory tugged at Nimbus’s
mind the way Zephyr yanked on her feathers.
That moment, Luna, dozing in a ray of sunlight,
shiftedabitinhersleep.Thelightaroundherchanged
andsuddenlyilluminatedwordsfaintlyetchedinthe
bottom corner of the cage. Nimbus had seen the words
ahundredtimesbefore.Sheevenknewwhattheywere
individually. But that day, in the glowing shaft of after-
noonsunlight,Nimbusreadwhatthewordsmeant,
andthatideainherheart,thatinstinct,burstforth
intoapossibility,anoptionoffreedom.Sheread,“To
OpenCageTurnLatchandPullUp.”
And Nimbus understood.
That evening, after school had ended, the jani-
tor opened the door to Room 268 to wheel in the
cleaning cart. It had been a warm and windy day.
The sunset glowed pink, yellow, and the same
fieryorangecolorofazebrafinchbeak.Ontop
of the school roof, feathers ruffled in their first
spring breeze as the sinking sun in all its colors
wasviewedbythreenewpairsofeyes.HOORAY FOR THE
POWER OF READING!HELPING IMAGINATIONS
TAKE FLIGHT SINCE...
FOREVER!PHYSICS! SIMPLE MACHINES! OH,
YEAH. SCIENCE SAVES THE DAY!10