My windows are covered with salt spray, especially those that look on the ocean.  When I peer out, what I see is clouded and spotted, distorted by the deposits made in each tiny...

When I drive over the bridge to the mainland, I am reminded that island life makes it easy to see ourselves as separate, remote from the “mainland of humanity”.  Sometimes it’s tempting to make...

   I began my walk this morning when a neighbor waved to me.  She is going through a very difficult time; she confessed that her life seems without value and meaning.  As we walked...

   An eastern wind blew against my face as I walked on the beach today.  My glasses quickly covered with salt spray and I couldn’t see the markers that usually determine the length of...

During this afternoon’s beach walk, I noticed footprints that attempted to crush each intact shell in their path.  Remnants of shattered shells lay in the pattern this person had left behind.  I wondered by...

A new house is being built on the lot beside me.   The men work and call to one another, play their loud music, and operate their noisy machines.  I miss the peace and quiet...

  When I stood on the deck this morning, I heard a pinecone fall from the tree and thud against the deck floor.  I was startled at first, but them pleased too.  As I...

  This morning the fog dripped from the leaves of the pines, making soft sounds against the sand.  Sometimes when we need rain badly, I wait for thunderclouds and torrents of water.  Yet, this...

 Today I found three wounded starfish on the beach, each missing a leg.  They were touching one another.  I couldn’t determine if they had been one another’s victims or were tending to the pain...

This morning I went to visit a friend and heard the gulls crying near her porch, wheeling and shrieking with their loud, raucous laughter.  “They’re upset,” I said.  “No, they’re in love,” she responded. ...