Dear Diary,
As I sit in this forest reflecting on yesterday, my mind flies from one new experience to the next. Despite my 3 mile goal, the novelty of this forest journey caught my eyes and delayed my travels more times than I expected. I’m shocked I made it the 2 miles that I did with everything that happened.
I began my day the same as before – cream filled coffee and a journal entry in you, my sweet companion. Pepper seemed more tired than the day before. He yawned and curled into a little fuzz ball of black and white spots as I gathered my things and put out the fire. By the time I was ready to go, he was twitching and quietly sleep-barking . I felt a little guilty pulling him out of whatever epic dream that was playing in his sweet little brain. With another yawn and a big stretch he stood up. Day 2 awaited.
The forest was sunny and welcoming. My ankle was still mildly hurting, but the scratch looked like it was healing. We passed a pond within the first hour or so. I pulled a hook out of my pack and fashioned a fishing pole out of a stick and some string. Add some foraged bait and, before I knew it, the line was being tugged. I wrapped the fish in some leaves and continued the walk with a little more excitement in my step.
A n hour or two later, Pepper and I came across a break in the path. One way went left, the other towards the right. This was definitively not mentioned in my research. I had to admit, it made sense… so much of this forest is a mystery… I just thought I’d have another day or two before the path became confusing.
“Let’s see,” I said out loud. “If I go to the left, it looks a little rocky and it goes upward on that hill. If I go to the right, it looks like everywhere we’ve been before…” Pepper walked towards the left side and wagged his tail. He ran to me, ran to the left then ran to me again with those big brown eyes.
“Okay, boy.” I told him. “Let’s see what’s to the left!”
Using my walking stick, I kept my balance up the increasingly rocky trail. It took about 10 minutes, but we finally arrived in a carefully decorated circular dead-end. Tablets and signs were everywhere each with its own message. Some told me about the forest – things to avoid, things to gather. Some were covered in lament – “Go back while you can!”; “I don’t know why I came here!”; “I keep going in circles! Why do I keep going in circles?!” However, most of them were simply unanswered questions – “Does anyone have a map?”; “Is 4 eggs, a fish and some vegetables enough to keep me going?”; “What animal scratched me and how do I avoid getting scratched again?”
That last one caught my eye. I would have loved that answer as well.
After reading as many signs as my brain could process, I turned around and made my way down the hill with Pepper by my side. Both the climb and the decent took a toll on my body. I was both exhausted and feeling more pain from yesterday’s scratch. It was as if my energy was replaced with a throbbing ankle and a mind full of other people’s voices. I sat down and leaned against a large tree. I put my head on the tree truck and closed my eyes. When I opened them the sky was sunnier and Pepper was avidly licking my face. The ankle pain was back down to “mild/ignorable”. It was pretty obvious I’d been out for at least 2 hours and I. was. hungry.
Somewhat revitalized, I made a small fire and cooked that morning’s fish. The flavor was off, but it was sustenance.
“Looks like we’re going to the right.” I told Pepper. He wagged his oblivious little tail and we trekked on.
Just before sunset, we came to a gorgeous field of flowers. They pulled my thoughts towards home. A warm bed. Familiar surroundings. Happiness. I leaned in to smell one, but as I got close I noticed something odd. The flowers had a strange glow to them. Flowers don’t glow! I looked a little closer and saw a green flash through the glow every few seconds. I started to feel homesick. It felt like these flashy flowers were pulling me into the adventure-less “safety” I purposely left behind on day one. I started to feel dizzy. The scenery started to swirl in my mind. Maybe this is why that person before me kept going in circles… I clenched my fists and shook the feeling off.
“Let’s get out of here, Pepper.” These were not the warm/fuzzy, safe and happy plants they appeared to be!
We ran through the field and back into the forest. I went deeper and deeper into the dark woods before I felt safe enough to set up camp. I was impressed and surprised at how well my ankle handled the run! It felt stronger (if that was even possible)!
I had a savory dinner, cuddled my pup, and lost my consciousness again in a land full of more choices, perils and adventure. Pepper’s snoring woke me up a few times, but I didn’t mind. Having him with me is such a blessing. No one should travel this crazy forest without love by their side.
When I woke up this morning, I felt refreshed and ready for the day. I’m pretty sure my ankle will continue to flare up from time to time until more days have passed. I’m done making travel goals. I can only imagine what this journey will throw at me before it becomes second nature. For now, I will drink my creamed coffee, remember to breathe deeply and continue to trust that the destination will be worth the effort.
Dear Diary... 