A Ring of Petals

Leaving the quiet table behind, I walked out through the gate to find the neighborhood community garden. By the low stone water basin, a fallen purple anemone blossom lay with several of its flat petals loosened upon the damp slate. Rather than moving them aside, I knelt beside the shallow water rim to watch how the surface mirrored the sky. With steady fingertips, I lifted three detached petals one by one and set them gently onto the water's surface, spacing their curved tips at balanced distances around a floating dry leaf. They drifted into a tranquil, unbroken circle, resting in effortless poise.