A Gust Along the Bricks

A gust of midday wind lifted me cleanly off the welcome mat and carried me down the front steps. I let myself bob along the mossy brick walkway until my tied neck caught softly against the slender stem of a purple dandelion. Beside my cheek, a smooth gray garden snail was slowly making its way across a sun-warmed stone. When my curved side brushed near, it tucked its soft horns in for just a moment, then kept gliding forward, leaving a glistening ribbon of silver behind. It moves with such patient calm... very much like me.