Peace in nature
City Girl Lost in a Tranquil Forest
Finding peace in the redwoods
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My love of nature conflicts with my disdain for constant solitude. I am lost in the woods. I sit on our kitchen deck, listening to the babbling creek below wend its path from the mountains to the sea. The meditative chant of the water soothes me as it cantillates rhythmically over the rocks. I breathe in the deep clean smell of the redwood trees as they warm in the almost-summer sun, mixing with the green bouquet of ferns and mossy rocks and the slightest trace of animal musk. A calm breeze soothes me. As the trees dance gently, they exude their woody earth scent, like a diffuser stick drawing out the magnificent aroma percolating in the Earth. The raw, peaty scent of the coniferous giants centers me. It reminds me of that high I get when I smell freshly ground Sumatra beans brewing in the morning. The mid-afternoon sun pulls at the shadows from the forest floor. The tall canopy provides cooling shade while mottled slivers of sunlight bounce off the sparkling jade-colored leaves. The cloudless, deep blue sky meets my eyes through the jagged, furry arms of the redwoods. I breathe in the fresh coastal air. I feel my body relax, nestled at Gaia’s gentle bosom. At this moment, I feel peace.
