You can put yourself on pause but the world moves on, so keep playing.
As sand slides from the bucket, Sam watches. For that tiny moment the waves hush and the birds hold their chattering. He feels as if the beach is a photograph and he's eternal within it. He dreams of the inner life of his castle, the one formed at his touch. Music bounces from within, notes dancing, bringing the people to movement. Sam sees a million sunrises and the starry nights that follow, each as crisp and perfect as the last. And then the moment blossoms into a fresh one.
The corner of the castle crumbles as if it were a raisin cake at the hand of a hungry child. Sam laughs. Now the sandcastle has character; she is free of the walls that made her, breathing in the seaside air. He imagines her as Cair Paravel, the castle of the Narnian Kings and Queens. Soon he is creating a story, one of bravery and love, one of strong open hearts.