Worn down to beauty

Beach grass

“The houses

of so many mussels and periwinkles

have been abandoned here, it's hopeless

to know which to salvage. Instead

I keep a lookout for beach glass--

amber of Budweiser, chrysoprase

of Almadén and Gallo, lapis

by way of (no getting around it,

I'm afraid) Phillips'

Milk of Magnesia….’’

— From “Beach Glass,’’ by Amy Clampitt (1920-1994), an American poet who spent much time on the Maine Coast.