Shadow Stopwatch

A long, crisp shadow was stretching across the warm concrete slabs on the patio. Instead of trying to outpace it, I figured it was time to clock the sun itself. I hauled a heavy brass bolt out of the garden caddy and stood it upright right on a flat, smooth square of stone. The afternoon light cast a skinny, dark needle pointing straight toward the garden bed. Grabbing a stubby piece of blue sidewalk chalk, I crouched down and drew a clean line right along the shadow's edge. Checking back after a few quick warm-up laps, that dark pointer had already crept forward past my blue mark!