During a short vacation in Montauk, Long Island with friends and family, we built a beautiful sand castle on the beach. The next morning after the tide had come and gone, we found a rounded mound of what had been our castle. We returned to the beach and

For all of our toil, all of our plans
Castles are built in the sand
And after the storm, after the waves
Together we?ll build it again

It?s not for the castle, not for the sand
Not for the view from sea to land
It?s for a smile that you can bring
It?s just to build a beautiful thing

***
The hurricane came just in a day
The life that we knew washed away
I watched as my hopes disappeared in the sand
Until I saw one outstretched hand

It?s not for the castle, not for the sand
Not for the view from sea to land
It?s for the people, the care you can bring
It?s just to build a beautiful thing

***
As much as I?ve mourned possessions that passed
Castles may not always last
Built for the process, not for forever
Built for the love we?re building together

It?s not for the castle, not for the sand
Not for the view from sea to land
It?s for the people, the care you can bring
To live is to build a beautiful thing