Grounded Step
The stillness cleared. My clenched fingers loosened, responding naturally to my thought. I shifted my weight forward, feeling the solid, rough texture of the cracked stone beneath my boots. A small jagged rock fragment drifted slowly at waist height near my side. I extended one hand and gently tapped its edge, watching it tilt quietly in the air. The balance was clean and steady. I let my hand settle, standing grounded in the open quiet.