How I spent my summer vacation

I sit here at my computer, trying to come up with a topic to blog about, something animal-related, something spiritual. It’s been a while since I wrote anything for Patheos, wrote anything at all for that matter.

I confess: I took a break, a summer vacation from writing, if you will.  A little time off from wordcrafting isn’t a bad thing. It’s like ice cream. You love it, but too much can make you so sick you never want to see a hot fudge sundae again. So you abstain for a while, until the craving returns and then indulge it responsibly. (That was a pretty good rationalization for heading to Friendly’s tonight, don’t you think?)

Last week, while the kids were getting ready to go back to school (or are already back in the classroom, depending on where you live), I went to the beach. I lay in the warm sand, listening to the waves crash and the gulls screech. I took hundreds of photographs, a hobby I’ve experimented with for a while.

I take a lot of  pictures of my dogs. But I’ve been fascinated lately with waves and water and movement. I pondered the way the waves crashed softly on the shores of Lake Ontario, water that at some point had been in Canada, far to the north. I marveled at the life in water just inches deep, small fish or other creatures almost invisible to the eye, unless you’re standing still for long  periods of time, just observing.

Last night, I snapped a few photos of the sun setting – although from where I was standing at Durand, I couldn’t see the sun actually set over Lake Ontario. I could just observe the colors the sun left behind as it traveled through the clouds, brilliant oranges visible for just moments as the evening changed from dusk to dark.

Tell me: What did you do on your summer vacation? What did you see and how did you recharge your spirit?

(Note: all photos copyright 2012 Joanne Brokaw)