A path beside the water

The path is most useful before the day becomes busy. At that hour there are only a few bicycles, the sound of water moving over the shallow stones, and long patches of shade beside the wall.

Nothing changes quickly here, which makes the smaller differences easier to notice. The grass has grown above the low rail in two places. The first dry leaves have collected at the inside of the bend. Morning arrives a little later than it did in July.

What was worth keeping

A route does not need to be remarkable to become a useful measure of time. Repetition gives ordinary places a kind of detail that a single visit cannot.