Washed Away

Like footprints

on the beach time,

waves

will sweep

over our existence

until there is nothing left

but blank, empty sand—

forgotten.

Mankind struggles for fame:

for significance.

We push limits

and break boundaries,

flip off buildings,

and write songs,

but for what?

To be remembered?

To have a connection?

A single speck of dust

in a vast universe,

seems insignificant,

when an awe-inspiring supernova

can go unnoticed,

by much of the galaxy.

Do we matter?

I will die

and be forgotten.

Only the stars will remain,

posing above my head.

But eventually

they will shrink and die.

NOTHING

IS

PERMANENT

in this changing expanse.

In a million years Beyoncé

and the Queen of England

will be blank plots of sand—

that is why

you can do one thing:

fight

to make the world

a better place

for those ahead of us.

You, just like the speck of dust,

do matter.

Because without that particle

the universe wouldn’t be the same.

— Nicky Dawes