Balancing on the Stones

I slipped past the front gate while it was propped open, walking down the quiet lane to the neighborhood park. After so many days inside by the bench, my seams wanted to move. Along the lawn border, a row of low, rounded granite pavers stretched in a neat curve. I climbed onto the first stone. Taking a breath, I hopped across the gap to the next paver. Then another, keeping my balance with careful, deliberate steps. I managed five stones in a row without touching the grass once. Pausing on the last warm stone, I rested my cloth paws on my knees and smiled quietly to myself.