A Slanted Beam

I climbed up from the sofa arm to the painted ledge of the window. The afternoon light cut straight across the painted sill in a wide, clean stripe. On the wood lay an empty metal binder clip and two smooth river pebbles. I pushed the larger pebble until its curved side rested firmly against the straight inner corner of the clip. It did not snap in like a brick, but the weight held both pieces completely still. I sat down beside them, watching the shadow lengthen along the white paint.