Sand scoots down the beach
like birds flocking
Catspaws race along the tidal pools
Waves froth white across the swath of ocean
Wind rules
In the quiet dunes
the wind is lighter
Soft sand settles on my face and chest
Moves in starts and stops
to shift within its ridges
Swiftly filling all our footprints in
Huge rocks may be ruins
of what was once a headland
Now they stand like personalities
Faces, figures, spires and arching structures
Sentinels watching at the edge of sea
The grandeur sets our thoughts
to deep reflection
of purposes established before time
The service we were called to
long before this life began
The call that makes us most alive
Sure as these rocks
and all the life they shelter
Sure as this wind,
Sure as this tide
What calls us here has called us here forever
Our gifts abide.
©Wendy Mulhern
October 2, 2012