Over the last week I’ve been traveling through Utah. This is the second time I’ve went this year, completing my tour of the big five. In June I saw Zion and Bryce. This time I saw Capitol Reef, Canyonlands and Arches.

In Utah there’s space to think. There’s also massive giants of this world. If you’ve never wandered through a canyon at twilight then you need to plan a trip immediately. Absolute silence with a warm breeze pushing you forward. The sky lit up like a bonfire and absolute silence engulfing you. I’ve never found a better place to plan my future and ponder life.

Right before I left for the trip, my editor sent her edits on my novel. Another giant that I needed to contemplate.

I hastily read through the edits, then hit the road. I was almost in a panic over receiving the edits. I don’t have a problem with people editing my work, but for some reason this time it struck me as a last gasp. After going through the novel it would theoretically be done and ready to submit. On some level this terrified me.

Although the trip wasn’t intentionally timed this way, it worked out. I used the fourteen hour drive to think. Shadows fell and disappeared, then I was in Capitol Reef staring at unimaginable tons of rock. For the first time that week, I felt at peace.

Feeling small made me want to work harder. As insane as it sounds, seeing something so beautiful made me want to create something that rivaled it. I walked to the top of mountains and stood on arches—all the while I dreamed of words changing the world. I saw thousands of people shoving their way through crowds just to catch a glimpse of the sun hitting a balancing rock—I imagined myself locked away at a desk. I stood on top of a mountain with a friend and looked down on an alien world of canyons and trees—my mind wandered through scenes that had only been spelled out in backwards type that only I could read.

Now I’m back at home and working on the edits and I feel free. I’ve seen and conquered giants. I’ve looked at where I need to be and nothing can take my heart away. I’ve put one small fingerprint on a corner of the world and in return it’s given me enough inspiration for ten lifetimes. What inspires you?