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Echoes by the Sea

by Jeff Byrd

(Inspired by Ernest Holmes “Sermon by the Sea”)

By the shore where wisdom speaks,

A voice rises—ancient, deep—

Inviting all who listen near

To sense a world made whole and clear.

 

“Show me a man,” the voice intones,

“Who loves, who gives, who walks alone—

Yet sees himself in every face,

And knows his heart as boundless space.”

 

Not bound by walls, nor held by chains,

We see beyond life’s passing pains;

For mind, unmeasured, knows no bounds,

And spirit’s call forever sounds.

 

Holmes’ words rise like waves of light,

Proclaiming truth, dispersing night—

“To be love’s light, to walk life’s way,

To make tomorrow more than today.”

 

A vessel, each of us, to hold

The warmth of grace, the promise bold,

That one in spirit, all are free

To live the truth of unity.

 

As grains of sand become the shore,

We join to form a Something More—

Our thoughts, our hearts, a boundless sea,

In peace, in joy, in harmony.

 

So let us carry forth the call,

With wisdom’s light to break each wall;

To serve, to give, to heal, to be

The mighty wave, the boundless sea.