Growing inspiration

I love the world we live in. I'm incredibly lucky to live in New Zealand, and particularly in the tree filled enclave where we've settled. Winter is settling in over here and rather than the bush, beaches and hammering surf New Zealand is famous for, our skies are full of broiling grey. Yet I'm writing a series set in some of the world's hottest beach spots and all of them include getting into the water. Some days I look out the window and wonder whether I'll be able to pull the warm out of my head and make it feel real on the page. And that I guess is when I let nature really do that thing she does best. Inspire. The way the trees bend in the rain suddenly becomes the graceful arc of tropical palms, heavy with coconuts and rich with sun. The sodden dirt in my vege patch becomes sand, churned by hundred of feet as surfers and media make their way to the break. And the grey sky? Okay, sometimes it's hard to feel inspired by that, but if I let go of my disappointment that the sun has chosen to have a sleep in, I can pretend that it's a storm front, churning with wave-creating energy. It's all connected somehow. Two sides of a coin, trees bending under rain while their sisters soak up that moisture and reach their branches up and into the growth the sun provides. Sorry if that sounds a bit much, I must be channelling lady Gaia today ;-)
Anyway, if all else fails, I can just write my characters hunkered down with mulled wine, weathering out the storm, nothing like huddling with your honey in front of a fire.
Thanks world, you're a constant source of inspiration.
What about you? Does nature spark your creative energy or does the rain just dampen your spirits?
X Michele