Waterways and God's Ways on Saint Simons Island

By Joan Hetzler

Poems that share God's beauty and peace from the beaches and paths of Saint Simons Island, Georgia. The author lived there for ten years and during that time shared her love of the island beauty that spoke to her of God's love and protection. From sandy beaches to shady oak trees with branches draped in hanging grey moss, the author travels the island and sees God's gift of peace in each step. If you can't go to the beach this summer, let these poems take you there for a soothing stroll along gentle beaches or strolling the quaint village streets as she remembers with joy.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Joan Hetzler
• Release date: May 22, 2024
• ISBN: 9780996578943

Joan Hetzler

Joan Hetzler has been a freelance writer and editor for over twenty-five years. Her creative writing experience includes stage plays, poems, short stories, humor, memoir, and mystery novels. For eight years, she produced and hosted The Writer's Show, a radio program devoted to writers and their readers at a local college station. Our of her love of mysteries, Joan developed the Megan O'Connell Mysteries where Megan, an investigative journalist with a nose for murder, lives out her Christian faith and helps others in need. Also, Joan tries to capture her experiences living on the coastal islands of South Georgia and the mountains of North Georgia in stories and poems that reflect the Glory of God.

Book preview

WATERWAYS

Water dancing on my soul.

Fountains splashing in my heart.

I see God’s grace

in each crystal drop,

silver sprinkle,

and clear velvet flowing stream

with a white foam top.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND

St. Simons sways

to wind caressed hanging grey moss,

swooping sea birds,

ships on dipping waves,

shimmering sand in the noonday sun,

and shifting shade tree patterns on a tabby patio.

St. Simons steams

with hot, damp skin touched by salty breezes,

sidewalks melting spinning bicycle tires,

and cafe grills sizzling for hungry beachcombers.

St. Simons smells

of old sea shells and salted air,

of suntan lotion and sea-sodden marshes,

and of suppertime on the village strip.

I always think of St. Simons in the summer....

THE BEACH

Sunlight on the back of my neck

feels good.

I like the beach —

the shells,

the sounds rushing past me, through me,

over me, under me, around me,

the water pulling away the sand

from beneath my heels and my toes

and the sinking feeling of not having a stable grip.

I like the caws of the gulls

that fill my ears

and float in with the sound of waves and surf.

I like the wind forcing me

to be strong

and stand against it,

whipping away my problems, my worries,