05/09/2026
Chapter 6 — The Final Chapter of My Love Affair with 11 Mile Lagoon 🌊
And so, I think, this is where I leave her.
Not because there is nothing more to see.
Quite the opposite.
But after all these chapters, all these photographs and all the different moods I've witnessed, it feels like I've finally told the story I wanted to tell.
I have watched this beach change beneath the light. I've felt the wind sweep across the lagoon and watched waves roll in, crash against the reef and retreat again.
I've seen calm turquoise water turn wild and powerful. Storm clouds gather over the horizon. Golden light spill across ancient rock. I've watched the same stretch of coastline become completely different from one visit to the next.
And every single time I thought I'd seen 11 Mile Lagoon at her most beautiful, she showed me something else.
Wild.
Raw.
Powerful.
Sensual.
Untamed.
Soft.
She never needed to try to be beautiful.
She simply was.
And perhaps that's what I came to understand about myself here too.
That I don't have to be polished or perfect to be beautiful.
That softness can exist alongside strength.
That being powerful doesn't mean becoming hard.
That there is enormous freedom in finally allowing yourself to be exactly who you are.
For a little while, this place felt like home.
A place where I could breathe.
Where I could be still.
Where I could lose myself in the waves and the sky.
Where I could simply exist without needing to explain myself or be anything for anyone.
And most importantly, I felt like I belonged.
Even if it was only for a few hours.
Sometimes, after spending so much of your life searching for where you fit, finding a place that makes you feel at home — even temporarily — is something you never forget.
So this is my final love letter to 11 Mile Lagoon.
Not really goodbye.
Because I don't think you ever truly leave the places that have touched something deep inside you.
You carry them with you.
I'll carry the sound of those waves.
The wind on my face.
The warmth of the rocks beneath my feet.
The endless sky.
The changing colours of the water.
And that extraordinary feeling of standing there and thinking:
For this moment, I am exactly where I am meant to be.
Thank you, 11 Mile Lagoon, for your wildness, your softness, your power and your extraordinary beauty.
Thank you for giving me somewhere to escape to.
Somewhere to breathe.
Somewhere to wonder.
Somewhere to feel free.
And somewhere, even if only for a little while, to feel loved and like I belonged. 🤍
My favourite beach in the world.
My little piece of freedom.
My beautiful 11 Mile Lagoon. 🥰😍💙
