Guest Blogger…Dana Dampier

I’m excited to have my first guest blogger… Dana Dampier.  Although Dana is a poet, she chose to share with us a time, a place, and an element (water) that felt nourishing to her.  It was the time she realized she wanted to be a writer. 

Do you have a special place to spend time in nature?  I love my backyard swing under the biggest, old dogwood I have ever seen. 

I know you will enjoy Dana’s journal entry as much as I did.  Welcome Dana!

Dana’s Post:

I wanted to share with you the exact moment that I decided I wanted to be a writer.  This is a journal entry of sorts that I wrote (about 12 yrs. ago) while spending the day in my favorite spot. I loved to sit by this stream that flowed through the woods and my backyard. Nature has always inspired me…so naturally I would write. This particular day…I realized my writing was much more than a hobby or a release. It was my life…my dream.

*This journal entry remains unedited because I wanted to capture my thought process while writing and we all know that we don’t always think in complete sentences! Plus the poet in me likes it this way!

A Lovely Place to Dream

Sitting by a stream, thinking of a dream I’d love to come true. Sitting on a log watching the rippling water flow downstream to maybe another distant dreamer.  I see a leaf floating by, conquering all the curves and bumps that the water has to offer. The sun shines through the trees, playing tricks on the mirror like water. The rays of light maybe sent by God warming my face as I think. What could be better than this? I watch as a family of ants march across the stream using a stick as a bridge. Carrying their food to where ever it is they live. Carefully they walk with their load on their backs going over and around the land. A butterfly breezes by with the gentle wind showing a flash of color. How beautiful it floats through my dream. It lands right beside me perhaps to say “Hi” and take in all the beauty of the time. I move to touch the water and watch as it curves around me. I feel the coolness against my warm skin and think about how lovely this is. What could be more perfect than this moment? Only if everyone could find a place like this to dream.

   Sitting by an ocean thinking of a dream I’d like to come true. Sitting on the jetty seeing the vastness of the water and watching the waves crrraash against the granite rocks. I feel the whispers of the salty water as it kisses my body. The water rolls back into the ocean toward another place where someone is dreaming. The sun, a giant orange blaze, setting in the sky covers the world in reds and pinks. I think, what could possibly be better than this? I watch as a shrimp boat raises its nets for the day and slowly drifts back home to port. The wind giving it a small tug as it blows all around and through my hair. I capture a glance of a dolphin coming up through the chopping waters. His grey skin shining in the sunset. Perhaps catching a glimpse of the beautiful world surrounding him. I close my eyes and smell the salty air and my soul is immediately calmed. I could stay in this exact moment for the rest of my life and be in heaven. What could be more perfect than this? Maybe sharing my dreams with the world.

 Dana Dampier is a stay-at-home mom to three boys by day and a poet by night.  She also writes a little flash fiction.  Dana has been writing since her elementary school years, but during high school…she realized writing was her dream.  She resides in Louisiana with her family.

You can read more of Dana’s work at her blog http://www.crazypoeticlife.com  She is also on Facebook www.facebook.com/crazypoeticlife and Twitter https://twitter.com/crazypoeticlife