A Clean Impression

I climbed onto the low study desk and found a wooden rubber stamp resting beside an open tin of dark blue ink. Gripping the smooth turned knob with both hands, I set the rubber face squarely against the spongy pad and pressed down until the springy surface yielded. When I lifted it, a fresh, wet sheen coated the carved pattern. I aligned the stamp over a blank corner of an open notepad, braced my feet against the wood, and leaned my whole weight onto the handle. Lifting it away, a sharp, flawless blue star was left behind on the pale paper, gleaming under the lamp.