Footprints

We walked through sand stained black
Some ship spilled darkness that transformed
sepia brown to exotic inkiness
I tried to pretend I was in Hawaii, or some other volcanic isle
and when that failed I pondered the meaning of light
for just a moment
it being far too weighty a topic for an afternoon stroll
so I turned to my companion and asked
If some catastrophe happened,
and the shoeprints upon the sand were petrified,
would those who uncovered them a million years hence know
they were all made by the same species?