“It’s a sand dollar. I’m sure you’ve seen one, probably even held one in your hand, huh, Josh?”

Noah kicked his fins and dove down about ten feet, picking up the sand dollar and resurfacing to get air through his snorkel. From beneath the water’s surface, he proudly displayed his newfound prize to Robin.

“No two are exactly the same. Its simplistic design and imperfect form may appear somewhat… well, ordinary. Most people probably wouldn’t think twice about it. So why should this seemingly insignificant object capture so much of my attention?”

BOOM ! The precious sand dollar in Noah’s hand exploded. In what seemed like slow motion, the sand dollar disintegrated through his fingers into a thousand tiny grains of sand that evanesced into obscurity.

“Because for me, the sand dollar represents life, and how fragile life really is. What was once so very precious to me, suddenly and without warning, disintegrated and vanished before my eyes. Just like the sand dollar, life holds no promises. Seemingly solid and secure in our grasp, the blessings we have in our lives today are easily shattered tomorrow. The lesson learned: never take your loved ones for granted. And if you’re ever lucky enough to find that one person in life who makes you love more than any other person could possibly make you love, you treat every day together as if it were your last. You cherish every moment.”

“However, for me, this lesson came too late, for she was already gone, seemingly lost forever. And there was nothing I could do to put the pieces back together. I would spend my life wishing I could somehow travel back, back in time, to the day I first laid eyes on that precious beauty.”

The precious beauty of Robin’s young face was shadowed by sadness as she nervously searched Noah’s worried eyes for reassurance.

“If only I’d known how fragile she really was. If only I’d known her hidden secret. I would have held onto her so differently… never letting go…”