I get tossed neat books every so often and this summer I had the chance to read and review the book The Twelve by William Gladstone and his sequel “The Power of the Twelve“.

Great, books, obviously, otherwise I never would have shared them with you.  They take the reader through the days as we approach the Dec 21/12 “world ending” concept from a new angle and do a great job of involving you in the characters, and story line.

Great read, great book, highly entertaining.

But. . .  that’s not what I want to really talk to you about.

See, in the first book, towards the end, a group of characters were tasked to visit their “sacred places”  Places they had been to in their life that made an impression, or were special to them.

This idea of having sacred places made an impact on me, and got me thinking of my own sacred spots in the world.

I have seen alot of places around our big world.  Europe (17 countries) Australia and South America, as well as those hot spots, St. Lucia, hawaii, Mexico etc. I have ” been around”

But in all those places, only a few really stick out to me as special. Only 4 of them have made a lasting, impressionable impact on my soul.

Biarritz, France, “The Cabin”, Powell River, “Sea Glass Island” in the Gulf Islands and The Lickey Hills in England.

Sea-Glass Island… our secret spot

Nothing amazing happened in any of the places, and in some of them I have only spent moments, not days or weeks, but they all stuck to me somehow.

If I were asked to return to my sacred, memorable places in the world, these places are where I would go.

And it got me thinking, does everyone have places like this? Spots around the globe than leave an imprint on them, that change them at some deeper level, and stay with them for the rest of their life? If you had a moment to think of the places around our world that left a fingerprint on your soul, where would they be, and why?

I love books that inspire thought, and this one certainly did.  It inspired ideas, and conversation. It allowed me to step back into my memories and think about my life from a different perspective, and understand the importance of my past experiences.  It took me on a little vacation to my favourite places.

I read a book for the journey, and when I am able to continue that journey after the book is finished, I know it was a good one!

Grab your copy via the amazon links above, and enjoy the journey! And share with me… do you also have “sacred places” in your life? Where are they and why are they so special?