A Quiet Stand

I climbed from the soft armchair onto the polished wooden chess table, where an unfinished game rested in the evening lamplight. Across the grid of walnut and maple squares, a lone carved wooden pawn lay tipped on its side near the center. Walking between the taller pieces, I knelt beside the smooth timber. I wrapped both of my curved plastic hands around its slender neck and braced my feet against the wood grain, levering the piece upright until its circular green felt base settled flat against the board. Standing beside it on the warm checkered surface, I rested one hand against the polished wood, pleased to leave the little sentinel upright.