The Caribou Lake Lodge was closing for the winter, and after six months in Ponder, I was sorry to leave. It’d been the longest time I’d ever spent away from my mother and the city of Seattle, where I’d been born and raised. The separation hadn’t been easy, but I felt it was time well spent. It’d always been just my mom and me, and being apart had taught me valuable lessons about myself, lessons I hoped to take with me as I headed off to my first real job. As a sous- chef, I’d be working hand in hand with the head chef, creating menu items, plus training new staff, as well as keeping the kitchen organized and flowing. I’d been given the opportunity of a lifetime, working in a newly opened Seattle restaurant with Douglas Anton, a renowned chef. A career break like this didn’t come along every day. For me, it was a dream come true. The culinary school I’d attended had recommended me for the position. Their faith in me was more than I could have dreamed. The only drawback was that I had to wait six months after graduation for the completion of Chef Anton’s newest restaurant, which was why I happened to be in Alaska. This opportunity not only helped me to pass the time, but it also gave me the chance to do what I loved best: create recipes based on locally sourced ingredients.

Now it was the end of October, and time to return home and start my career. In the morning, the Brewsters, the remainder of the staff, and I would catch the last passenger ferry for the long ride down the lake to semi- civilization, before hopping on a small plane to Fairbanks, and from there, on to Seattle.

I was surprised at how well I’d acclimated to Alaska and to the lack of amenities,  considering I’d grown up in a city where I’d had everything at my fingertips. Ponder had no shopping mall, theater, or Starbucks. Access to the Internet was only a recent addition in the past few years, and that had been a game- changer for everyone in town.

Alaska was beautiful. One of my favorite things to do was watch the eagles dive for fish in the lake. Jerry Brewster, the lodge owner, entertained me with story after story of the eagles on Caribou Lake. One time he’d hooked a salmon and was reeling it in when an eagle swooped down and grabbed the fish and flew off with it. With the fish still attached to the line, Jerry attempted to reel it in, fighting the eagle for the salmon. While Jerry eventually won the battle, the eagle had left talon marks on the salmon’s flesh.

The longer I lived at the lodge, the more beauty I discovered each day. I could stare for hours at the night sky. Living in the city, I’d never truly seen stars the way I could in Alaska. I was left awestruck by how many were visible in the totally black sky, like diamond dust scattered across the heavens.

Of course, I’d been here through spring, summer, and early autumn, when the awesome splendor of all that was Alaska was evident every day. I’d been able to observe moose and caribou from afar, and even once saw a bear amble down the middle of town as if it was shopping day. Moments like those made me have no regrets for not having access to a Starbucks or a nail salon for almost six months. I’d more than survived this experience— I’d thrived here in Ponder. I wouldn’t have thought it was possible when I’d arrived. Those first couple weeks in town, all I saw was what the little town didn’t have. It wasn’t long before I began to appreciate the abundance of all that it did have to offer.

ABOUT DEBBIE MACOMBER

Debbie Macomber is a No. 1 New York Times bestselling author and one of today’s most popular writers. In addition to fiction, Debbie has also published two bestselling cookbooks; numerous inspirational and nonfiction works; and two acclaimed children’s books. The beloved and bestselling Cedar Cove series became Hallmark Channel’s first dramatic scripted television series, Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove, which was ranked as the top program on US cable TV when it debuted in summer 2013.  Hallmark has also produced many successful films based on Debbie’s bestselling Christmas novels.