A Tap in the Stillness

A long stillness held me... then, an inward breath. My arched neck tilted an inch further into the quiet air. I remained completely motionless, watching the pattern of light and dark squares resting beneath my palms. Nothing stirred. With slow, deliberate patience, I eased a single slender branch of my hand downward. The dry tip grazed the cool checkerboard plane, producing a faint, hollow tap. I stopped right there, letting the silence settle around me again.