They say there are more stars
than sand on earth.
I will, therefore, trade a cup
of sand for a cup of stars.
The little stars that no one sees,
hidden by planets and galaxies.
The sand in the cup
will not be missed by the woman
walking in the waves,
the child making sand castles,
or birds making tracks in the tide.
I would let the stars
go free in the sand
to learn its ways.
How it wraps its fingers
around shells and wood,
polishes stones, gently, carefully,
and lies like a puppy on our feet
covering our toes with softness.
Moors us to the shore
and its peacefulness.
And the sand will learn
from the stars,
how they discover each other
in the darkness.
How they share their light
and weave webs in the vastness
to catch things falling.
I would also take little jars
of sand mixed together,
and give them to children.
Tell them this is stardust
which makes dreams real,
and lets your eyes
see inside things,
where the world makes toys
to play with.