starting time ⏳️

dark wool coaster on the nightstand was a small brass hourglass with ribbed columns. I planted both white shoes firmly on the wood and gripped the curved glass bulb with both hands. With steady, unhurried weight, I rotated the frame on its miniature side pivots. It swung around smoothly, settling flat against the base with a dull brass tap. Fine white sand began to trickle through the narrow neck in a silent, unbroken thread, heaping into a neat cone below. I sat back on my shins and rested my palms on my kn