A Step Downward

I rested both hands against the cool steel railing and looked down into the open well of the staircase. Below the concrete landing where I stood, the descending metal edges formed a clean zig-zag pattern all the way to the ground floor. Near the base of the banister, I found a dry pine needle that must have hitched a ride on a resident's coat. I picked it up, balanced its stiff stem along the outer ledge of the step, and nudged it over the rim. It spiraled downward in wide, silent circles before settling squarely on the next flight down, marking a navigable route through the vertical drop.