as we wander along the glistening beaches of life
our weary footsteps imprint into sands of time
so that after we have departed this turbulence
they still mark the way for our endless posterity
and when the angry waves clash onto rocky shores
peppered with our past judgments and dark trials
we still clear an easier path for children to follow
even when we veer too close to the swelling tides
friendly healing waters—wash away every meander

then—as our long course of promise extends beyond
to the forested mountains that distantly overlook
trembling blue waves of our deep ocean experience
the towering pines of bright verdant green await us
capturing all the things that we can’t take beyond
quivering trees filter the dust of pain and injustice
and drain them into the furious depths of the ocean
allowing us to carry on—the bags of things that matter
our family’s love, forgiveness, and enduring happiness