A little background: Ms. Lindbergh wrote this book while she was staying in a tiny beachfront cottage on Captiva Island (which neighbors Sanibel Island) back in the 1950's. I love the book's simplicity and, of course, its inspiration: a sea that almost magically washes millions of intricate shells to shore. Lindbergh eloquently uses these shells as metaphors to describe the varied phases of a woman's life.
Decades after this book was originally published, the little islands of Captiva and Sanibel, I'm happy to report, remain wonderful places to go shelling. Most importantly, however, Ms. Lindbergh's insights into life, solitude and relationships are still incredibly relevant in 2014.
Here is one of my favorite quotations:
“...I want first of all... to be at peace with myself.
I want a singleness of eye, a purity of intention, a central core to my life that will enable me to carry out these obligations and activities as well as I can.
I want, in fact - to borrow from the language of the saints -to live 'in grace' as much of the time as possible. I am not using this term in a strictly theological sense. By grace I mean an inner harmony, essentially spiritual, which can be translated into outward harmony...”
-Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Photo: Creative Commons via Flickr.
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