The First Step Outside
A Year Lived Slowly – Chapter 2
Stepping out in the morning has a precise sound.
The door closing softly,
the foot meeting the pavement,
the air changing temperature.
Outside, the world is not yet in motion.
Streets are present, but not intrusive.
It is the moment of walking without direction,
simply to feel how one moves through space.
The light is different.
Less gentle, more honest.
It does not welcome: it tests.
A ring accompanies this first contact.
It is the same as before,
yet it now responds to movement,
to slipping light,
to a gesture that becomes more deliberate.
Outdoors, the London blue topaz grows deeper.
It does not seek reflections.
It remains steady, like a thought that does not need confirmation.
The first step outside does not change direction.
It changes posture.
And sometimes, that is all it takes
to enter the day with presence.
A piece of Italy, from Silvia Kelly to the world.
