The Barnacled Shell
By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe
On the coast of Brittany,
Beneath the silvery twilight,
The sea rolled in gently,
Gently for a sea,
And left its treasures.
One was a barnacled shell encrusted
With scars of victories in the battles of life.
I picked it up briny from the sea
And traced its furrows,
Rough and unseemly.
"Throw it away.
Keep this one instead."
Yet, I kept it in my hand,
And again, ran my fingers
Over its cicatrices--
Its victories in the battles of life.
I slipped it, encrusted, triumphant,
Into my jeans,
And joined the others on the margin of the La Manche,
