There are so many forms and permutations of love. Like an extract, love can flavor our actions towards others. Certainly, we can provide shelter for strangers, but when it is done graciously it comes with a measure of love. To welcome strangers into our home, to feed them, to provide for their creature comforts, to anticipate their needs and to make their stay not only safe and practical but luxurious is indicative of a generous heart. It is a sign of kindness and a genuine desire to care for others. And that can only be explained by love.

I am at an intensive writing workshop in St. Augustine along with thirteen other writers. Our hostess (who is also one of the workshop attendees), has opened her oceanfront home on St. Augustine beach. While the weather has been cloudy and drizzling, the atmosphere has been very conducive to writing and learning. And our hostess, Miss Linda, has done a stellar job at opening her home to thirteen near strangers. Some souls are just wonderful and amazing. Late this afternoon, during a break, I sat on her back deck and worked on my locker hooking. I had a head filled with structure and plot considerations. I let go and listened to the surf, the rolling waves, the occasional sea gull and yard birds nesting in the sand dunes. I remembered the power of the ocean. That lolling, undulating, hypnotic rhythm draws away my tension and worry. And for a spell, I was in the company of my main character. The ocean and the shoreline are significant for her. They are significant for me, too.

Thank you Miss Linda, for opening your lovely home and creating such a wonderful environment. You are a kind-hearted woman.