A Slanted Discovery

I waddled out from the warm alcove beneath the refrigerator into the morning light. Ahead, the kitchen door showed a thin slit of bright air, with a thick woven welcome mat resting near the threshold. As I approached the coarse border, my pink shoe bumped against a forgotten glass marble trapped under the mat's rubber edge. I tilted my head to watch the clear glass glow with blue and green swirls. Stepping back, I gave the sphere a firm nudge with my side. It popped free from the rubber lip and rolled across the smooth tile until it rested neatly against a stray cork coaster.