On The Shore Poem by Matt Ransom

There are the rushing waves
mountains of molecules
each unaware of the others
trillions apart
yet forming white surf in unison

Ages upon ages
before any eyes could see
year after year
thunderously pounding the shore as now
For whom? For what?
on a dead planet
with no life to entertain

Never at rest
tortured by energy
wasted prodigiously by the sun
pouring into space
A mite makes the sear roar

Deep in the sea
the pressure forces conformity
At the surface
complex new patterns are formed
that make others like themselves
and a new dance starts

Growing in size and complexity
living things
bursting with machinery
DNA and proteins
dancing an ever more extravagant pattern

Out of the cradle onto the dry land
here it is standing
atoms with consciousness
matter with curiosity

Standing in the sea
wondering at wondering
I
a universe of atoms
an atom in the universe