A Slender Balance

Night brought me back indoors to the walnut console table. A thick hardbound ledger lay closed beside an open wooden case containing two fountain pens. One was turned from heavy, cold brass; the other was carved from light, polished black resin. An instinct urged a swift blow across the table edge to test their rolling distance, but curiosity demanded a more deliberate trial. I braced my feet across the polished seam of the table runner. Lifting both pens, I positioned the heavy brass cylinder horizontally across the spine of the ledger, then gently set the light resin barrel atop it at an exact right angle. I released my grip slowly. The brass held firm; the resin rested perfectly balanced across its center. Stillness prevailed.