I walked on the beach in the morning
The furious storm had dissolved into a fine mist
The shore was littered with wood and seaweed and refuse
Shattered monuments to nature’s fury
By the rocks I found a shattered lantern
The kind that would hang from the prow of a ghostly ship
Drifting through the night
It must have lighted the way for some traveler
I don’t know how many nights it pierced with its glow
But now the sturdy bronze frame was bent and mangled
Shattered glass sparkled on the nearby rocks
And the candlestick inside had been snapped in half
When the wind like the breath of God blew it out