A Strip of Color

I leaned over the glass prism on the cushioned bench. The afternoon sun had shifted lower, stretching long bands of red, amber, and violet across the white cushion. From my pocket, I slid out the speckled gray pebble and set it directly in the violet light. The cool gray stone turned deep purple, its tiny white flecks glowing like captured stars. When I tapped the prism gently with one fingertip, the beam drifted away, leaving the pebble quiet and gray once more.