PEACE BABY! ✌
It's that time of year up here in the Land of the Midnight Sun when we are fully aware of why this wild, wonderful place has this moniker. The robins chirp all night long because to them, morning is all night! This is great for the mating season, but for humans who desire sleep at 3:00 a.m. it's close-the-windows time. So we can sleep in peace.
The above photo is one of my favorites and whenever I look at it, I get a sense of peace in my heart. Because it's a reminder.
When we're in a large touring vessel motoring in any of Alaska's ocean waters, and we approach a tidewater glacier, the captain slows the motors. For one thing, it's not wise for a boat to get too close to a tidewater glacer when it calves. Mini tsumanis race outward. There have been kayakers and small boats swamp or flip over by the displacement of water when enormous chunks of ice hit the ocean. Another reason the captain slows the motors is to listen...not just to the lapping of the water on the hull, but to the peaceful silence. Broken only by a flock of gulls, or a shrieking eagle claiming the salmon just beneath the surface.
But most of all, we wait...and wait...and wait...then SNAP! A sound like a thunderclap. Then another. And another...until the air fills with sounds of ice grinding down a massive glacial wall, then breaking off. A nanosecond of pause, then KERSPLOOSH! Into the ocean it goes, all in slow motion. The waves ripple out, eventually reaching our boat and our vessel glides up high on the wave's peak, suspends, then gracefully lowers back, level with the ocean.
I try to go on these tours at least once every summer. Either in Resurrection Bay out of Seward, Prince William Sound out of Whittier, or Kachemak Bay in Homer. All three offer the grandest that Alaska has to offer. What I like is the peaceful feeling that fills your heart. Nothing to distract you but the forces of nature, the breath-taking beauty, and the marine life. The whales love to show off by breaching around the tour vessels when they slow or stop. Returning whales know the cadence of the bays, they know when the boats motor to the outer shoreline. They'll swim alongside sometimes, roll over, dive, then burst from the water in all their wild splendor.
As they fall back to the sea, I instinctively put my hand on my heart. There's no words to describe the all-encompassing feeling when I experience this. But I do know one thing...whenever I take these boat tours, I really do feel like I'm part of this spectacular marine world. And it's a peaceful one.
Mostly I love going to our cabin. The photo above shows the view from our bluff on the edge of our little cove, on Kachemak Bay. When I want peace in my heart and in my life, I head here, to my happy place. We found it some 28 years ago. It's boat only access, so we don't get a ton of visitors, but we do get kayakers, paddleboarders and the occasional boatload that stops by for a visit.
I think all of us need to find that inner peace that lies within us. It's hard in today's world with all that goes on, but it's there, if we give ourselves time to settle in and let it come to us. A happy place recharges our batteries, and rekindles our spirit. I'm heading down there tomorrow morning, in fact. The first thing I'll do is drag my sea kayak to the beach and paddle out to Otter Rock.
And wait for a whale to breach and bring me the peace I know that lives deep in my heart.
Where's YOUR happy place?
Side Note: The author wears peace sign tee shirts, PJs, and sandals; and sleeps on peace sign sheets and matching quilts. You can take the girl out of being a hippie, but you can't take the hippie out of the girl. Peace Baby!
***
I'm thrilled to announce my second novel, Alaska Inferno is now on Amazon. I'm thrilled to say the reviews are wonderful so far and it's hit a 4.9 rating!
LoLo Paige was a wildland firefighter for the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Alaska Fire Service. She's an award-winning author of two novels in the Blazing Hearts Wildfire Series, Alaska Spark and Alaska Inferno. Her stories contain edge-of-the-seat, invigorating action, strong-willed female firefighters, and romantic suspense. LoLo and her husband divide their time between their beach house in Kachemak Bay, Alaska and sunny Arizona.
"I could almost feel the heat of the wildfires that surrounded the crews as they staved off threats..."
"The men are wild and yummy and the women are strong and lovingly feisty. The plot moves along at a fast pace..."
Website / Bookbub / Goodreads / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter / Pinterest
3 comments:
Thanks for a painting a picture in words and images of peace. The majesty of nature brings peace to my soul also. I've never been to Alaska or seen the ice calve in person as you have but I have sat by waterfalls, walked along the ocean shoreline or sat on rocks and merged with the waves flowing onshore.
What beautiful images you painted with your words. It seemed I was beside you experiencing the beauty and peace of Alaska. Thanks for the peaceful interlude.
LoLo, I Loved this post and the pictures to go with it. Alaska coastal areas are in my list of places to visit for exactly the reasons you describe here. My only visit to Alaska was the interior from the Fairbanks airport to Tok for a week. I also love that you have peace t-shirts, PJs, sheets and quilt. You are surrounded by peace when you sleep.
Post a Comment