To me, a forest is the very definition of hope. It inspires, frightens, soothes, ignites, sweeps up and away. A forest is a sanctuary. It’s a shelter, a hideout, a journey, an escape. And when darkness descends, it’s far superior to that niggling, everyday light. Basically, I fancy a forest.
I fancy a forest every day. I fancy it so hard it’s a permanent fixture in my rising pail of desires. A forest is a reminder that no matter what life throws at me, I can feel peace and bliss for its duration. There is often more companionship in the lone hush of a forest than in a room full of people. Because a forest never judges, never pressures. It doesn’t want everything, always, all at once. In fact, it doesn’t want anything, least of all me. It is the only tale of unrequited love with a happy ending. It doesn’t want me, but it welcomes me. It can certainly live without me, yet never fails to embrace my presence. What a truly wondrous thing! To all the forests out there, all the woodlands, mountain thickets, coppice snippets … this is for you —
Thank you for embracing my darkness, allowing light to filter through you and on to me. Thank you for the dawns and the dusks, the balmy air and frosted leaves, the calm that cradles. Thank you for listening without opinion, for talking without speech, for accepting without condition. I won’t go too far into specifics, like your luscious scent after the rain, or the raw beauty of your twisted roots, but know this. You are, and always will be, the most real and abundant saviour in my world. My very favourite natural thing. You’ll never be mine, and I love that, even though I’ll always, always be yours.
What about you? What’s your soothing place? The place you feel completely and utterly … you. Your place of hope. The place you’d write a love letter to. I’ll start you off: I fancy a …
The Dark Alive 