Sand Castles by Valerie Parente
When you’re a child there are as many possibilities
as there are grains of sand
so you begin to assemble them
into castles, so grand.
Something about having the whole world ahead of you
filled every moment with a sense of awe
you could be anything someday
so you chose to create something small.
Little sculptures from your little mind
before that mind expanded beyond something safe
with no concept of the sadness of time
how waves will always come to wash it all away.
You grow up and you realize
your sand castles were never meant to last
and every grain of sand
will return to the ocean, so vast.
It’s not about it being over
it’s about the memories that withstand
past, present, and future recycle over and over
into another child’s little castles made of sand.
– Valerie Parente (7-7-2025)
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