A Gust on the Chime

I wandered outside toward the neighborhood courtyard beneath the tall pergola. A light afternoon breeze caught a low-hanging bamboo wind chime, tangling its three hollow tubes around a twisted twine cord. I stepped onto the flat stone base to reach. Steady does it. Using the firm outer rim of my leafy bundle, I nudged the first bamboo pipe outward until it swung clear. Click, hollow and sweet. With another patient bump, the second and third tubes untangled and dropped straight down. The breeze passed right through, sending a gentle, woody chime singing across the sunny path.