A Mark in the Sand

I paused beside a wide stone planter filled with cool, dark sand. The surface looked perfectly smooth and untouched in the midday light. I waited three quiet breaths to make sure no birds were visiting. Then, leaning my weight forward on one knee, I carefully pressed my left foot flat into the soft earth. I lifted it back very slowly so the grains would not crumble. Right there in the hollow was a tiny, clear shape of a bee, pressed neat and firm into the damp ground. Seeing my little mark resting quietly in the soil made me smile.