A Day Full of Sand

I wonder if the earth
Feels my determination
When I etch your name in sand

I write to you there
Because time is an ocean
That sneaks toward the land
To reclaim its shells

I trace your name
Just beyond the salty reach
To keep you on the map
While my grief swells

I bury my compass
In a trampled castle
Beside an abandoned pail
And a plastic shovel

Feeling the burning circle's reflection.
Life now faces
 this grave direction.

I would rather see where you went
than know where I'm going.

I just want a glimpse
of you soaring through.

Instead, I wander
 with a day full of sand
And a mind full of you.