In June of 2019, I joined a group of like-minded travelers, led by Jonette Crowley from the Center for Creative Consciousness, on a five-day spiritual retreat in the town and countryside of Mt. Shasta, California. The journey was made even more special by a group of seven European women who stayed at my home in the Bay Area before and after the retreat. Guided physically by Andrew Oser and spiritually by Jonette, our group of fifty took parts in hikes to energetic and sacred spots on the mountain and enjoyed meditations led by Jonette and her spiritual guide MARK. From this experience came a desire to write about this special place someday. But my life was busy, and the project remained on the back burner.

Enter the COVID pandemic of 2020. Everyone was encouraged to stay home. Directives were enforced by new city, county, and state regulations. All of a sudden I had a lot of time on my hands. What a perfect time to start some serious writing. In addition to writing about new energy, I wanted to incorporate present-day situations and problems that came along to challenge my fictional characters. Included were fires, droughts, floods, and hurricanes. In other words—climate change.

Here are some beautiful pictures taken by various members of our group during the retreat. I’m also the happy owner of a 2019 Chevy Bolt, which appears in my story. Successful adaptation to climate change is truly just around the corner if we will just open our eyes, look at what’s happening around the world, and make the tough decisions that need to be made for the good of all of us.