Once I was far away from all the noises and people caused by the largely populated town I could finally relax. I was going to visit my eldest son who had just been married and moved into a nice little cabin in the wood miles away from any town.

The sound of water gently flowing over rocks along with the sounds of bird songs and of the horses hooves walking down the path filled my ears. My nose was taken over by the smells of horse sweat, pine trees, and freshly fallen rain.

A creek came into view along the path. A doe and her fawn were drinking from its waters peacefully. I stopped the horse and jumped down from its back. As I slowly started to walk toward the pair of creatures, they looked up and saw me. We stood like that for several seconds, just standing still examining each other. After she was certain that I was not a threat the doe and her fawn turned away from me and walked calmly and gracefully into the woods from which they came.

I never realized how beautiful and calm the woods could be. Everyone in town made it seem so dangerous and evil. I guess they just never took the time to venture in and actually look around at all the beauty it had to share. I lead my horse over to the rocky bank of the little creek so we could drink. I cupped my hands and lowered them into the water. The water was cool and crystal clear. It tasted crisp and fresh and was quite refreshing. I hopped back on my horse and continued along the trail.

The tree line on one side of the trail came to an end and an overlook appeared. I halted my horse to enjoy the view. A short ways down there was a large clearing overgrown with tall, green grasses, and a rainbow of wildflowers. A large buck came running through the clearing right into my line of vision. It was being chased down by a small pack of wolves. It was amazing how the wolves seemed to run so gracefully that it seemed effortless. It was also amazing to watch how they ran and moved as if they were one soul, one body, one mind. All it took was a flick of an ear or a twitch of a tail to spread a message throughout the pack. I sighed in wonder and continued riding along once again.

As I went along I started to feel something that i never really had before. I felt like I wasn’t alone. I felt as if i was being watched. I started to worry slightly thinking that maybe it was a pack of indians hiding in the undergrowth ready to ambush me, but then I remembered that there were no indians living in this area. I was still worrying about who or what could possibly be out here with me and if it came in peace or not.

After slowly riding along the trail for several more minutes I realized that maybe whatever or whoever was studying me must not mean any harm. If they did wouldn’t they have attacked me already? What are they waiting for? As I began to relax I started to notice things about the sensation that I hadn’t before. It was almost as if hundreds of beings were hiding in the woods examining me. The woods were still, calm and birds were singing so nothing was suggesting that those watching me were sinister. Unlike before I was not worried about this invisible presence or if it meant me harm.

It was almost like they were watching me from every bush, rock, and tree. Waiting to see if I meant harm to their woods, if I was one of those men who will cut down their vegetation and kill off their animals. But they realizedI wasn't going to. Maybe they even read my mind when I was think about how beautiful these woods were. I started to think that since they realized I meant no harm only admiration that they were just going to watch over me for the rest of my trip, and protect me if needed. I think that people should admire the beauty it holds and leave it for future generations to enjoy instead of destroying.