Riding the Updraft

The edge of the terracotta saucer gave me a clean run-up. Ahead, the metal balcony railing dropped straight into the open courtyard. I paused, feeling the midday thermals pulse upward against the concrete exterior wall. A light gust rattled a dried rosemary twig beside me. Path charted: three quick hops across the planter rim, tilt nose up thirty degrees, catch the ridge breeze. I surged forward. The instant my nose cleared the rail, a crisp updraft caught both bent wings. My prop spun in a swift, singing blur. I banked hard right, carving a smooth arc through the warm air before touching down squarely on the broad, flat cap of the railing corner.