The Ball in the Hand
A ping pong ball resting in the hand is a small sphere and nothing else. It has no direction, no score, no history. The table stands there. The net divides an emptiness that has not yet become a game. Everything that will happen happens after the ball leaves the palm. A vote has the same shape. An opinion you hold is not a vote. An intention you announce is not a vote. A preference that never reaches a ballot box, a mail tray, or a canvassing board is a ball in a closed hand: real, round, and worth nothing to the score. ...