I am participating in the March Slice of Life Story Challenge. Thanks to the co-authors of              Two Writing Teachers for creating this  supportive community.

When I open my computer at the start of the day, I am greeted by a picture from the Microsoft Windows photo gallery. I love seeing scenes from different parts of the world, and often they provide a spark of an idea for a story or compel me to find out more. Like the time there was a picture from Morocco of goats sitting in argan trees. It almost looked like fake news, but it was true. Goats in Morocco really do climb argan trees to feast on the fruit. Fascinating! (There’s got to be a picture book idea in there somewhere.)

This morning I woke to a kangaroo on a beach in Queensland. There was something about the way the light illuminated the beach, or maybe it was the lone kangaroo amid a sea of sand. I had never associated kangaroos with beaches, and it was mesmerizing.

I clicked on the picture and was rewarded with a beautiful description:

As the sun rises over a wide beach facing the Coral Sea, a kangaroo arrives for a breakfast of mangrove pods and seaweed. Trails just inland from the sand curve through a large forest of mangrove and eucalyptus trees, where sugar gliders hang out during the day and sail down from the treetops at night.

Sounds like a place I will need to visit someday.