There are five main classifications of sand on earth, ranging from 0.0625 mm up to 2 mm in diameter. If we use the median grain range (0.25 - 0.55 mm) with a single grain representing one star, then all the stars in the observable universe would be represented by every grain of sand on earth: on all the beaches of every coast and in all the deserts - and elsewhere - in every nation of all continents.
If one of these same grains of sand represented a single person: all the people who have lived - and ever will live - would be represented by a single handful of sand.
First published as a print.