River Stones in Field Station Sink Before Dusk

Copper-toned light spills across a weathered metal sink brimming with wet river stones. Each stone gleams with a slick, dark surface where water clings after recent rain. The stones vary from smooth pebbles to jagged fragments, stacked in rough rows awaiting identification. Humid air settles over the scene, visible as a faint sheen on the metal rim. Behind the basin, blurred greenery marks the edge of a tidal survey transect in Massachusetts. The stones sit in tight clusters, their gray and brown tones deepened by the moisture. One stone near the front edge catches the fading light, revealing a sharp, angular facet against the soft curve of its neighbor.