A Shade for a Wandering Snail

I trotted out through our garden gate and followed the midday sun down to the park gazebo. Under the wooden bench, a tiny garden snail was inching across the dry, sunbaked flagstones, searching for cool moisture. Near the post lay an empty paper baking cup, clean and pleated. Pushing with both plush front paws, I inverted the paper cup and nudged it right beside the little traveler's path. With one gentle tap of my nose, I tilted its flared edge slightly upward, creating an open, breezy canopy over the cool flagstone so the snail could glide safely out of the glare.