SILENT DRIFTWOOD AND THE ROAR OF THE WAVES

BY

Laura Lee Christian


Waves so strong, persistent, and constant
bubbling with white active life
carrying millions of tiny animals
much too small to see
also they swirl around grains of sand
tossed and tumbled before
that's why the grains are so small and soft
when cushioning my feet
the swirling actions of this wild water
has held many an interested eye
as they watch the crashes and splashes
and expanding waves on the beach
the pulling of those returning back to
the ocean depths
and the rush of those going over
tumbling over
the irresistible pull
the odd shapes of driftwood
line the beach completely still
but they reached the beach
by tumbling through the surf
now they are sun-baked and hot
bleached out by the sun
and lay there for travelers to see, or pick up
for kindling,
or hidden artwork
that perhaps only they can see
and the children can find many things to do
on their worn and weather-beaten gnarls
they make splendid hiding places
and nooks, houses, teeter-totters,
balancing beams, horses, or beasts
of any kind
a tall one can be a castle
a samll one can be a chair
and a hollow one can be a swimming pool
one that's full of air
there's one that will be my diving board
a delighted child might say
captured with fascination
by their stimulating shapes and sizes
it's an exercise for their brain
their imagination and joy
can make an old tree limb
the greatest of any toy
and the water begins to rush around
the toys made of old dead wood
but are the trees really dead?
I think that the children have given them
a new life again
and the tide comes in
but the wood stays firm
sitting proud and still
having been made a throne for a king
or a nest for a little girl
their life has meaning once again
and more joy than before
and the song of the birds
mix with the roar of their waves
on the silent shore.
