Between the Blue Lines

I pushed beneath the front garden gate and trotted down the sidewalk. Drawn in bold blue chalk across the concrete was a neat ladder of hopscotch squares. I stopped at the first box, measuring the distance with my eyes until the lane grew still. Then I gathered my legs and hopped forward. I landed inside square one with a soft, chalky patter. One box at a time, I bounded through the sequence, keeping my paws safely tucked away from each powdery line. At the final rounded top, I planted all four feet with a solid thump. A tiny puff of blue chalk rose around my toes, neat and undisturbed.