Making Sand Castles……The Process of Life

Hot sun. Salty air. Rhythmic waves.

A  little  boy is on his knees scooping and packing the sand with a plastic shovel  into a bright blue bucket. Then he upends the bucket on the surface and  lifts  it. And, to the delight of the little architect, a castle tower is created.

All  afternoon  he  will  work.  Spooning  out the moat. Packing the walls.Bottle tops will be sentries. Popsicle sticks will be bridges. A sand castle will be built.

Big city. Busy streets. Rumbling traffic.

A  man  is  in  his  office. At his desk he shuffles papers into stacks and delegates assignments. He cradles the phone on his shoulder and punches the keyboard with his fingers. Numbers are juggled and contracts are signed and much to the delight of the man, a profit is made.

All  his  life he will work. Formulating the plans. Forecasting the future.Annuities  will  be sentries. Capital gains will be bridges. An empire will be built.

Two  builders of two castles.

They have much in common. They shape granules into  grandeurs. They see nothing and make something. They are diligent and determined. And for both the tide will rise and the end will come.Yet  that  is  where the similarities cease. For the boy sees the end while the man ignores it. Watch the boy as the dusk approaches.

As  the  waves  near,  the wise child jumps to his feet and begins to clap.There  is  no  sorrow. No fear. No regret. He knew this would happen. He is not  surprised.  And when the great breaker crashes into his castle and his masterpiece  is  sucked  into  the  sea, he smiles. He smiles, picks up his tools, takes his father's hand, and goes home.

The grownup, however, is not so wise. As the wave of years collapses on his castle he is terrified. He hovers over the sandy monument to protect it. He blocks  the  waves  from  the  walls  he  has  made.  Salt-water soaked and shivering he snarls at the incoming tide.

"It's my castle," he defies.The ocean need not respond. Both know to whom the sand belongs...

I don't know much about sand castles. But children do. Watch them and learn.

Go  ahead  and build, but build with a child's heart. When the sun sets and the tides take - applaud.

Salute the process of life and go home.