Fistfuls of sand making a delicate castle
Collapsed fifty times before
by nature’s tides,
by human feet
by my own shaky handed defects
Through bad intent
or noble indifference
the walls crumbled just the same
But now base materials mix with the sweat of effort
moulding disparate grains into hasty bricks
Still making for flimsy walls
shaken and cracked by the quakes and volcanoes over my shoulder
Yet strong enough for this build
The fifty-first try
Again easy to break
in gusts of wind
or sweeping waves
foundations deep enough though
to resist a well a aimed kick
or the distant growl of humanity
that once saw castles fall