I ride,
My long ride,
The 50 mile ride,
Thru towering slash pines,
Tall trunks topped with green,
To the east until I cross to the island,
On the bridge at Navarre.
Just the overture
Of a joyful symphony of sight.
Turning west,
I run the island,
Navarre Beach to Pensacola Beach.
My happy drug.
I drive between sugar white dunes,
Crested with sea oats,
Emerald shallows scalloped with white,
Border between the sand,
And the deep royal blue of the gulf,
Blending into the horizon,
Somewhere way offshore.
The water, the blue Florida sky,
Pathways to other journeys
Adventures past and yet to come.
I ride my long ride,
My happy ride,
My unending ride,
To the other end of the island,
But, not the end of my journey.
Donovan Baldwin
