Читать книгу Saving Joe - Laura Altom Marie - Страница 3

Dear Reader,

Joe and Gillian’s story evolved from a magical trip my husband and I took to the West Coast. Earlier that year, I’d gone through some tough personal stuff—long story. My husband had discount flight privileges through the company he worked for, so when vacation time rolled around, he suggested leaving our twins with his family, then heading to Oregon. (After visiting the state’s coast years earlier on business, he’d always wanted to go back.)

Anyway, we had no reservations except for our rental car and arrived in Portland in the middle of the night. The next morning we woke to fog so thick it was hard to see your hand in front of your face, let alone drive. Still, we slowly wound our way through thick forests to the Pacific. As in a dream, the fog lifted, and there it was, sparkling and gorgeous.

The tide was low and we walked across a beach strewn with beautiful black stones—many perfectly round like marbles. Next we came to tidal pools. Like the ones on Joe’s island, each pool housed an amazing array of life—starfish and anemones and so many fish I couldn’t begin to name them.

Farther down the road were giant sea caves, and then quaint little restaurants where we’d split a bowl of chowder. Like Joe, I found the Oregon coast to be an incredible place of healing. From forests thick with ferns and trees taller than many of the buildings we had back home in Oklahoma, to miles of deserted beaches, nature put on such a dazzling show I didn’t have time to think of anything but how lucky I was to be alive.

Wish you a lifetime of healing journeys,

Laura Marie Altom

You can reach me through my Web site at www.lauramariealtom.com or write to me at P.O. Box 2074, Tulsa, OK 74101.