Nature is Unmatched

Jeff’s parents had a log cabin on the edge of a large woods. Jeff was allowed to bring his two best friends Howie and Scot along for the three days they would be there. Since Jeff’s friends had never been at the log cabin before they were somewhat frightened about living at the edge of the woods. Jeff’s mother wanted the boys to be comfortable so she asked all the boys to sit on the house patio and offered them soft drinks. She began to explain to the boys what a woods really is. People think the woods and the forest are the same thing. Forest means group of trees while woods are smaller. Forests are usually described as a dense growth of trees covering a large area of land. Woods are generally smaller than forests and has less than tree density. That means that some sunlight can reach the woods as well as some animals like deer and rabbits and other ground-dwelling animals and even developing some walking paths.

The boys now had an understanding of what the woods are like. They made a decision to walk through the woods since it was now late afternoon. They each took a flashlight, their I Phone and a jacket since they expected it to get cooler and starting to get dark. It was now somewhat dusty as the sun started to go down. 

The boys entered the woods and walked along the path which was formed from the rain and snow as well as decomposing of leaves and other findings in nature.

They walked this path for a while and then decided to walk along another path before one could find foreboding as the woods darken slowly and they were hoping to find some soft lighting from the moon and the stars. The woods were quiet as the night birds stopped tweeting and the paths were starting to darken.

Jeff and Scot started walking on the second path when Howie stopped to tie his shoelace. The few minutes after his shoe was tied he became confused as there was two paths along the same space which he thought he could walk faster on one path to meet his friends. Howie now became frightened. He shouted out to his friends but they could not hear him. He started to walk back along the path he was on and he could see it turned and he knew he was lost again.

When Jeff and Scot realized that Howie wasn’t with them they became frightened as well. They were hoping there was some light from the  moon and the stars and they turned their flashlight on.  

Fortunately all the boys had their phones with them and Jeff and Scot were able to make a call when the paths started to go uphill. Howie”s phone wasn’t able to work as there was no response where in the woods it would not work and where he was.

Thinking he had to go higher to make a call or receive a call he started looking for a tree to clime on. He found one that had lower branches and he started to clime on upper branches and finally was high enough to make a call to Jeff. The boys were so happy to hear from him. They told him to wait with his flashlight on high until they found him. It took a while and the two boys found the path they were on and they followed it until they saw Howie on top of a tree with his flashlight on and his hand waving. Jeff and Scot ran to him and helped him down. Jeff had a compass on his watch and that showed him the path Howie took and exactly where the other two boys found him. They were all able to find the path they started with and they were all free of anxiety when they left the woods.

The next day all three boys and talked about their experience in the woods. Although they talked about the woods being frightening they thought the trees were beautiful and the sun came into the woods at different places, making the woods bright.

Jeff’s mom suggested they spend the next day at the park’s camp grounds.The camp  grounds were very different from the woods. She packed each of them a picnic lunch. She also gave them tubes of sunscreen and cautioned them to be careful in the park’s pool and to enjoy the piece and quiet of the lake. 

There was a pool area off to the left and a view of a lake in the distance. People rented paddle boats and row boats as they enjoyed the beautiful day in a quiet lake. An area of the camp grounds was fenced off where the grass was beautiful and there was a dairy farm where a few cows were resting on the grass. Suddenly all of the boys started talking about a calmness that they never felt before.

The beauty of this was more than the cows and the trees around the fencing and wild flowers growing. The beauty was of the stillness of the air. The boys couldn’t believe the quiet and the calmness. they were watching the lake at a distance and being mesmerized at the water moving quickly toward the camp grounds and then moving away. The boys heard music from the wind blowing slightly into the trees that surrounded the camp grounds. There was a feeling of warmth and safety that all the boys felt.

The boys talked a lot about their two days, one at the woods and one at the camp grounds. They talked about their fears when getting lost in the woods and how they were smart enough to find the correct path. They talked about their time at the camp grounds and how they felt when watching the movement of the lake and hearing music when there was a slight breeze and their bird tweets were so musical.

Jeff’s parents were delighted to teach the boys about the names of different trees they saw. His father also dentified the names of the birds they saw. This two day trip was not only fun but a learning opportunity. These young boys were learning to find serenity and peace through Mother Earth’s teaching.