They ride the tides ashore
by the thousands and tens of thousands
nesting lightly on the waiting sand.
We stroll the beach struggling for a footing
for which they have no need,
stopping frequently to pick one up,
look at it carefully and if it passes
our completely arbitrary test,
pocket it for display at home.
We watch the gulls, pelicans
and osprey ride the ocean breezes
imagining, if only for a moment,
that we could slip from gravity’s grasp
and join them in cavorting over the sand.
We never pause to consider
that each of the countless shells
was once home to a creature
whose life we cannot comprehend.