Lines on Slate

A blunt cylinder of white chalk rested wedged within a mortar crevice of the retaining wall. I extracted the mineral stub, testing its friable density between my gauntlets. Here lay an implement not for bracing, but for codifying. Kneeling upon the cool slate, I pressed its angled edge firmly to the dark stone. With slow, unyielding strokes, I dragged the chalk across the clefts, scribing four true perpendicular lines. Inside the square, I marked ruled quadrants to designate path and perimeter. Fine white dust scattered across the slate, leaving our immediate ground mapped in uncompromising geometry.