A Week In The Woods

The smoke rose high into the air, billowing in the gusts of wind, spreading out like an ashy cloud. Birds danced around it, soaring through the breeze, circling softly around the cloudy smoke, admired by the two figures sitting on the balcony of a small cabin, enjoying the scenery as the sun slowly set,

“I’m pretty sure that one there is a sparrow, and those might be swallows over there, oh and those could be finches in that tree to the right, you see?” The birds outside twittered and chirped like a small orchestra of nature, calling out “Here we are, here we are!” to the land.

“You know, I really don’t care what they are, I just like to accept them and admire them. I don’t really need to bother trying to remember what they’re called.”

“You say the same things with flowers.”

“Because it is the same thing. I like admiring their beauty, and I don’t really need to be bothered with what they’re called. I can just go ‘that pink flower over there’ or ‘that large bird in that tree’ instead of having to remember what their names are.”

“I understand where you’re coming from, but there’s something completing about knowing the names of all of the beauty you get to look at.”

“And, Rosie, is that why you brought a bird-watching book and a flower identifying pamphlet before the trip?” Rosie turned slightly red.

“I’m taking up new hobbies. I want to learn more about all of the nature we’re immersing ourselves in.”

“We’re only here for a week.”

“But I wish it was more. I’ve needed a vacation like this for who knows how long.”

“You said that at least 15 times on the hike up the trail.”

“Yeah I know-” Rosie let out a sigh, “-but I’m really grateful I can be here, and that I can spend time with you. Why don’t you appreciate it a bit more, Oli?”

“I do, just not the same way you do. I’m probably just as grateful and happy as you are right now, but I don’t need to say it every 10 seconds.”

“Oh, alright.” Rosie picked up her binoculars off the table and went back to staring at the woods, silently pointing out the birds to herself, occasionally looking down at the bird watching book open in her lap. Oli picked at the remains of the food on her plate. At least here there wasn’t unbearably loud silence whenever she wasn’t occupied. The voices of the forest filled the silent void, and she was truly grateful that she could be here at this moment.

***

The sun shone brightly the next morning, filtering through the blinds of the cabin and casting colorful shadows across the floor. The warmth of the sun lit up the rooms, arousing Oli softly from sleep. Out in the hall, the grandfather clock told her it had just turned 7:00, it’s chimes ringing softly through the walls of the cabin. It was early, but not too early to go back to sleep. 

Might as well make breakfast, Oli thought to herself as she got out of bed, slipping quietly past Rosie in her deep sleep.

Down in the kitchen, Oli made do with what she had. There was already food for the week in the cabin, but cooking up a grand meal wouldn’t be entirely possible if she wanted to ration the food for less grand (but still delicious) meals for the rest of the trip.

There was a package of tortillas in the cabinet, so she figured she could use 2 for burritos in the morning and the rest for something else (quesadilla, maybe?). She fried up the stuff for the insides (potatoes, veggies, eggs, some ground beef), and set out the extras on the table (cilantro, avocado, sour cream, hot sauce, salsa). Just as she was bringing the last of the food to the table, Rosie emerged from upstairs.

“Right on time.”

“This smells delicious.”

“It wasn’t all that hard.” To Oli, something like breakfast burritos paled in comparison to the things she would make at home, although none of that really mattered to Rosie, who could make basic meals like toast or eggs, but burned water whenever she tried to cook anything more complex. She could, however, bake cookies, and that was her one pride and joy (and buffer against Oli’s cooking skills).

“Too bad I can’t cook, then you would have to do the dishes.”

“That was our agreement. I do all the cooking, you do all the cleaning. That seems fair.”

“It’s not fair if you decide to cook the stickiest, messiest, hard-to-clean-est foods every time.”

“I don’t just cook whatever I feel like cooking… Which sometimes happens to be greasy or messy or sticky or whatever, and it’s not my fault the pans here are non-stick.” Oli crossed her arms.

“Whatever-” Rosie wrapped up her burrito. “- Just don’t complain about cleaning when I don’t spray the cookie pan.”

“Yeah, but first you’ll have to get the cookies off the pan.”

“I’m just saying.” Rosie shrugged as she took a bite of her burrito. “Ih woo’int urt to thimk abow-”

“Chew with your mouth closed, please. Also, I want to go for a nice long walk around the lake today, is that alright with you- just nod your head.” Rosie nodded enthusiastically.

“Okay, then I’ll get lunch ready. I think I saw a picnic basket in the closet.” Oli got up to get their meal ready, leaving her food untouched on the table, and Rosie to eat alone.

***

“What’s all this?” Rosie was on her tip-toes on one of the kitchen table chairs.

“I mean, we’re only here for a week, but we can at least do some decorating to make this place feel homier.”

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“I’m stringing up pictures I’ve taken while we were here- smile!” Rosie held up a Polaroid and snapped a picture of Oli’s face.

“Where did you get that?”

“Found it at my mum’s” It’s pretty neat huh? She had one before I was born, but I thought I could bring it along and take pictures. She had boxes of unused film and stuff so I packed it with all my bags and figured it would make a good memory-maker, and so I’m not all on my phone and stuff trying to take pictures and all that.”

“So did you bring it for the symbolism..?”

“I guess, kind of a ‘capture the moment’ kind of thing. We’re only ever gonna see this stuff the way it is once, and that’s right now. We need to make every second count.” Rosie went back to stringing up the photos; some of the birds, others of plants, a few of the lake. There were pictures of meals, pictures of the cabin, a few of Oli when she hadn’t been looking. Rosie had a box of small clothespins and an old Polaroid photo album.

“What are you gonna do with all these pictures after we leave?” Oli flipped through the pages of the album. Most were empty, there were a few photos that still hadn’t been strung up yet, and a few scattered snapshots of other places Oli didn’t recognize very well.

“I’ll probably put them all into the album you’ve got there. Maybe I’ll take up scrapbooking. I’ll do an entire book just for our trip.”

“Do you think you need another hobby?”

“Why not? None of them last forever, and besides, I like trying new things. I researched how to dry plants and I want to try that out here- take some of nature here along with us.”

“I don’t understand how you do it.” Oli shook her head. “I’m gonna go take a shower and then we can go birdwatch or whatever.” 

“Go shower then.”

“Alright, Rosie.”

“Alright, Oli.” And Oli disappeared up the stairwell.

***

“It’s soooo hot.”

“How hot?”

“Really, really, hot. I feel like my skin’s gonna melt off.”

“If your skin is melting you should probably see a doctor. I’m pretty sure if it’s hot enough to melt your skin it’s hot enough to melt the rest of you.” 

“You don’t actually expect me to give you a temperature do you?” Rosie ran her hands down her face. “It’s so hot that the lake outside is going to evaporate.”

“Why don’t we go swim in it then?”

“Huh?”

“Go swim in the lake before it evaporates.”

“Oh! What a good idea! I can’t believe we’ve already been here for half of the week and we haven’t swum in the lake!”

“I’ve been refraining from reminding you.”

“But you just did..? Oh nevermind, I have to go get my swimsuit on. I’ll meet you down at the lake slowpoke!” Rosie ran off to get ready for swimming.

15 minutes later, Oli was walking down the path to the lake, her sandals crunching in the sand.

“What took you so long?!” Rosie shouted from the water.

“I was getting ready for us to swim so we wouldn’t be soaking wet all the way up to the cabin.” Oli had brought towels, chairs, and a bag with Rosie’s hobby collection and a book for herself.

“I guess the cabin is a pretty good distance from the lake, with all the little hills and stuff.”

“This is exactly why I came on this trip with you. You need a.. a babysitter or something.”

“But you also came to have fun.”

“I guess.” Oli smiled to herself.

“Admit it.”

“Fine.” She unfolded the chairs and set the towels down.

“Now, come in the water!”

“Okay, okay.” Oli kicked off her sandals and ran down the shore. “Ah! Cold, cold, cold!” As quickly as she had run in, Oli ran back out, almost shivering from the cold.”

“At least you’re not hot anymore.” Pointed out Rosie.

“Touche.” Oli dipped her toe in the water, then slowly walked in.

“You get used to it, don’t worry.”

“Ah! What was that! Something bit my toe.” Oli shook her foot around under the water.

“It’s just the fish.”

“No one told me there would be fish.”

“You’ve already committed, come on.” Rosie moved forward to pull Oli into the water, her arms outstretched.

“Oh don’t you dare.” Oli dodged her grab, causing Rosie to fall forward into the water.

“That does it, come here!” Rosie splashed towards Oli.

“Can’t catch me!” Before she could realize it, she was almost chest-deep in the water.

“Hehe, you’re in the water now aren’t you.”

“You tricked me!”

“It worked.” Rosie grinned mischievously, before getting the smile wiped off her face by a wave of water.

“Oh, it is on.” She brought her arm across the water, making a wave that hit Oli squarely in the face.

“We’ll see about that!” Oli dived under the water to dodge another wave.

“Using the water to avoid being wet, a wise move, a wise move.” Rosie put on a serious face, before getting splashed once again, this time from behind.

“Got you!” Oli kicked more water into her face as Rosie turned around before swimming away.

“Come back here!” Rosie dived off after Oli, the two of them chasing and splashing through the water.

***

“Do you have the fire ready?”

“Almoooost.”

“You said that at least ten minutes ago.”

“It’s taking longer than I thought.”

“Just use the matches.”

“No! I refuse! I will do this the way they taught me in girl scouts.”

“Did they even teach you how to start a fire in girl scouts?”

“Maybe?”

“And did you learn?”

“Maybe..?”

“This is why I said to use the matches. We’re going to miss the meteor shower.”

“I got it! I got it!” A crackling blaze started up, slowly building up as it burned through the pile of logs and sticks.

“Should I get more wood from the cabin?”

“Sure.”

“Anything else we forgot?”

“I don’t think so.”

“I’m not going back.”

“Okay wait, wait, uhhh can you get extra snacks.”

“I already got extra snacks twice. We’re going to eat out all the food in the cabin.”

“Okay fine just get anything you see that you think we might need.”

“Very specific. You set up the rest of the area and get the fire ready and whatnot.” While Rosie set up the camp- sleeping bags and blankets and snacks and all manner of stuff that had been brought outside, Oli ran back to the cabin (for the fifth time, mind you) to get extra firewood just in case the fire needed more fuel.

“All set up.” Rosie settled into her sleeping bag just as Oli came running back, out of breath. She dropped the firewood onto the ground.

“I… I got your-” Oli had to pause to catch her breath. “-I got your Polaroid.” 

“My Polaroid, of course!” Rosie pushed her palm lightly against her head. “Thanks so much.”

“No problem.” Oli settled into her sleeping bag. Both girls looked up at the stars. The world seemed like a giant glass ball, the sky so big and vast and beautiful.

“Look, the shower!” Stars rained across the sky, only in sight for a brief moment. Even though they lasted for only a second, the memory of them would last forever.

***

“We only have two days left. Two days.” Rosie brandished a very clear two fingers right in front of Oli’s face.

“Yes, I know. That’s why we’re going to make these last two days count.”

“Isn’t that the point of every day?”

“True, but I don’t mean things like swimming or the meteor shower, those things are a specific type of making the day count. I mean just going about the day like we normally would any other day, but appreciate where we are. Just enjoy the fact that we’re here. Does that make sense?”

“Sorta… Does that mean I can make cookies?”

“I guess, yeah.”

“Wait, for breakfast?”

“Why not?”

“YES!” Rosie jumped into the air, pumping her arms, then ran into the kitchen singing, “Cookies for breakfast, cookies for breakfast!”

“These are probably the best cookies I’ve ever had.”

“Luckily there were the chocolate chips I use at home in the cabinet. I believe that they complete the recipe, and of course, I have my secret ingredient.”

“Would you mind sharing it with me?”

“It's a secret for a reason, but fine…” Rosie looked around suspiciously like someone might be listening, then leaned in to whisper in Oli’s ear.

“The sweat, blood, and tears of a human sacrifice.”

“What?”

“Just kidding! I can’t tell you, then it’s not a secret.” Rosie looked out across the land, then took a bite of her cookie, chewing it thoughtfully. “Maybe I’ll give you the recipe someday. We can come here again. I would like that.”

“Me too.” Oli looked out, over the roof of the cabin, and out into the landscape. From the roof, everything looked smaller, and somehow even more beautiful. The lake was clearer and illuminated in the morning light. The birds flew across the sky, diving in and out of the clouds, almost like they were trying to paint a picture with their wings.

“Save this moment, Oli. This will never be the same.”

“Not in any significant way, no.”

“But this moment, Oli. You know what, nevermind. You enjoy it your own way.”

“Whatever you say, Rosie.” Oli took a bite of her cookie thoughtfully, staring out with Rosie and the land below. She was happy she was here- Rosie was right of course. This wouldn’t be the same. Just being up here, eating chocolate chip cookies, as the morning birds sang their song. 

“I’m really glad I came with you. Thank you so much for inviting me, and… and doing all this.”

“This was a vacation we both really needed.” Rosie smiled, then got up and slipped down the side of the roof, back to the ground.

***

“I forgot about this thing I saw, called grounding, where you don’t wear shoes and stuff to connect with the Earth. I didn’t do it all week.”

“Then do it right now.”

“Yes! Yes, I will.”

“I’ll take care of the packing. Go bond with nature or whatever.”

“Thank you, Oli! Thanks a million.”

“Least I can do Rosie.”

“I mean it Oli, and thanks for coming too.”

“Go ground yourself, Rosie.”

“Yes! Yes, yes, yes!” Rosie pulled off her socks and ran out the door.

“I’m going to miss this place.”

“Why don’t we do this again. This time I can pick the place.”

“I would love that, you’re so great Oli.” Both Rosie and Oli turned back to look at the cabin, nestled in between the trees.

“Goodbye cabin! We’ll miss you!” Rosie waved her arms above her head at the cabin.

“Come on Rosie, or we’ll miss the cab.

“Alright, but I’m holding you to that promise, to get us another vacation.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever need a vacation as much as I needed this one.”

“But you still have to get us one, I’m counting on you to pick somewhere great.”

“I’ll try my best Rosie.”

“Thanks again for coming Oli.”

“I needed it more than you know.”

“We both needed it.” 

And with that, they walked away, looking back until the cabin was out of view, and even though they had left it, they kept the memories with them forever.