Mirrored Letters

A shallow wooden tray divided into dozens of tiny rectangular cubbies caught my eye on the console table. Inside each weathered compartment lay an assortment of vintage metal type blocks, their corners dark with dried ink. Stepping along the dividing wooden ribs, I paused before a heavy lead piece nearly as tall as my knee. Bracing both hands against its chilled sides, I tilted it upright into the low morning beam. Its face bore a sharply cut, reversed capital letter with an elegant sweeping serif. Seeing an entire alphabet sleeping upside down and backward is quite a civilized riddle to start the morning.