When Sharon asked me to write a guest letter this month so she could attend a niece’s wedding, I happily agreed. I’ve been riding a sublime wave of feeling this month, exhilarated by the exceptional interviews and intriguing research I’ve been doing for writing projects.

Every once in a while, it seems that the universe aligns behind assignments that become continuing education classes with the capacity to shift and expand my thinking. When this occurs, I imagine myself as a ship on an open sea with unfurled sails, prepared to respond to oncoming winds. As I navigate my course, I sense an invisible guiding force, a captain of sorts, that ensures a clear path around the obstacles of any hardened thought.

I couldn’t have asked for a better sea to sail this month. The first blessings arrived in reading the articles from Natural Awakenings’ national editorial team. They in turn inspired ideas for local stories, bringing more blessings as pearls of wisdom flowed from Southwest Floridians excited to talk about capturing the sublime moments of life, experiencing nature’s magic through shamanism, entering a blissful state by chanting in kirtan, enjoying the healing benefits of sound therapy and employing a silent yoga practice to move beyond conditioned thinking.

I love taking the stance of an empty vessel as sources talk and I listen and type, then ruminate and write, always listening for guidance. As a journalist, I do my best work in silence. Yet, I routinely require the refreshing winds of curiosity, imagination and inspiration that arrive through researching ideas with an open mind and engaging in meaningful conversations with like-minded individuals engaged in exploring new seas and charting new courses.

In other words, silence is wonderful, but my work can only be done within the context of the rich relationships that I’ve cultivated during 12 years of writing for this magazine. I am daily grateful for the rewards of being supported by good people that become friends. They are my ship’s crew, and without them, I couldn’t sail.

My hope is that our readers will continue to reflect upon subjects I’ve long been captivated by—silence, bliss, the invisible vibrations and frequencies of sound and eyes of wonderment that see the world as a child does. Like the vibrations emanating from crystal singing bowls and Tibetan gongs, I hope that the ideas in these pages will penetrate deeply to stir the heart and inspire you to open your sails and set a course of exploration and blessedness.  

In honor of you,

Linda Sechrist, Editor