A Green Stamp

I pushed past the heavy cover of the linen ledger and stepped out into the morning light. On the lower wooden shelf, close to the table leg, rested a small wooden stamp shaped like a tiny leafy branch. The rubber bottom still carried a faint trace of dried green ink. I knelt on the wooden surface and tilted the block upright with both hands. Pressing it gently against the corner of a loose scrap of blank paper nearby, I leaned forward on my palms. When I lifted it back, a faint, pale green leaf had appeared on the white sheet.