A Writer’s Inspiration

Peace, Be Still...

My inspiration comes from the natural world—along quiet trails and canopied pathways that gently lead toward the sea. I wander through mature maritime forest, crossing ancient dune ridges where massive live oaks stretch wide, their limbs draped in Spanish moss. Loblolly pines rise skyward beside sweet magnolias, while palmetto, holly, and cedar form a dense, living undergrowth.

The trail grows sparser, sandier. The air shifts. Soon, the distant roar of waves announces the nearness of the shore. Blue sky opens wide to the ocean’s full expanse, where skeletal trees stand like quiet sentinels along the beach.

Pelicans free-fall from the sky, plunging headlong for their catch. Offshore, a right whale releases a misty spout from its blowhole. Overhead, a lone osprey carries its prize to the safety of a high perch. Nature performs without an audience—yet offers everything.

With my mate beside me, we find a secluded stretch of sand and lay out our towels, surrendering to the surreal beauty and deep tranquility around us. Time softens. After a sweet indulgence, we marvel as the sun finally burns through the morning fog that framed our beginning.

Eventually—always too soon—it’s time to pack up and begin the return journey. Back toward civilization. Back to routine. Yet for a moment longer, we remain caught in the ocean’s spell, listening as the surf thrashes the shore, leaving behind fragments and whispers of tides yet to rise.

Ever changing. Ever calling.

And so I return—renewed—to pen and paper.

Inspiration is found in the beauty of discovery, along the winding trails of life.