The Little Brass Hook

I scrambled up the rough cedar post right beside the berry bushes and reached the weathered birdhouse! Right on the side was a tiny wooden cleanout hatch held shut by a curved brass hook and eye. I grabbed the smooth brass hook with both hands, planted my boots on a knot in the wood, and shoved upward with all my strength! With a crisp, gritty scrape, the curved tip popped clean out of the brass eyelet! The cedar hatch swung outward an inch on its miniature hinges, letting a sweet whiff of dry pine shavings drift right out into the breeze! Don't you love how decisively a simple hook releases?