A Morning Slice of Toast

I set my small clutch bag down neatly on the corner of the wooden breakfast table and pulled up a chair to enjoy the morning light. On a small white ceramic plate rested a golden slice of warm toast, accompanied by a little glass dish of orange marmalade. I picked up the small butter knife, feeling the cool weight of the silver handle in my fingers, and scooped up a generous amber dab. With careful, steady strokes, I smoothed the fragrant preserve right across the crisp edges until the whole slice gleamed nicely. The faint sweetness rising in the air felt like the gentlest way to greet the day.