Pippi Shell

I was once a living thing being swept with ongoing and outgoing tide
I used to be battered against the pounding waves like a river persistently eroding the land
I appear tiny and insignificant, but to those I eat I appear a ferocious monster
I have symmetrical and smooth bumps like a hill rising up to the sky
I have long since ceased to exist, but I still live on in the hands of many
I used to be a glistening speck of life embedded in the sand but I shine like a ruby in sea of coal
I have overcome and adapted where most have fallen
I am better than the biggest diamond but only to those who want me to be
I could be a piece of rubbish scattered across the ground or I could be treasure that pirates fought to get from an underwater kingdom
But I am now sitting on a shelf gathering dust. Those who had believed, believe no more - for they have all grown up and stopped pretending about the wizards and witches and pirates that fought against the seven seas.