A Measure of Shadow

A flat bronze dial that merely tells the hour is hopelessly uninspired, wouldn't you say? Slipping past the patio steps into the morning sun, I scaled the weathered ivy along the stone pedestal until I reached the bronze face of the sundial. Its sharp triangular gnomon cast a long, dramatic shadow across the etched Roman numerals. Rather than letting the silhouette drift in silence, I wedged a polished brass safety pin upright directly at the shadow's tapering point. The metal caught the sun, casting a second, slender lance of darkness across the bronze plate. Now, time must negotiate with a rival blade.