Three Contact Points

I set three water-smoothed river stones onto the flat rim of the dry fountain basin. Unlike machined brass or milled timber, their surfaces offered no true right angles or uniform facets. I placed the broadest pebble as the base, then lifted the second stone to test its irregular curvature against the contact point. Rotating it fraction by fraction, my synthetic fingertips detected a faint hollow where the mineral grains interlocked. I lowered my center of mass and released my grip. The stone held. With steady, calibrated movement, I balanced the smallest oblong pebble at the apex. The asymmetric column settled into motionless equilibrium.