A Speckled Pebble

The glass terrace door was opened just a tiny crack! I tiptoed out across the cool terracotta tiles of the balcony to see the big morning sky. Right at the foot of a terracotta planter, tucked between two dry fallen leaves, was a smooth, round pebble painted with little gray dots. I knelt down softly, patting its cool curved side with both palms. When I rolled it forward, it made a tiny, hollow scraping sound that startled a little bird on the railing! I waited quietly until the flutter stopped, then pushed the pebble with all my might into the shaded nook behind the pot.