A Controlled Run

I positioned a smooth wooden shoehorn against the edge of the shoe cabinet, angling its curved tip downward toward a shallow ceramic dish. A stray glass marble rested inside the key tray. I rolled it between my hands to assess its weight, then set it at the top of the wooden channel and let go. It accelerated down the polished grain, navigated the bend smoothly, and dropped into the center of the dish with a crisp, resonant ring. The incline required two minor shifts to prevent the marble from leaping past the lip. Once calibrated, each release landed true. A satisfying experiment in momentum.