The rain stops only one week every summer. The lush rainforest thrives in the rain, but its beauty is difficult to appreciate most of the year. The cold rain drives off many of her passers-by.
This week is that week, the week with no rain. Travelers flock from all across the land to see her beauty in the light of day.
At the crack of dawn we begin our trek, as we hike far detached from society, the noise subsides. Quiet. Silent. Still.
A thick moss covers all: the rocks, the trunks, the branches, and the forest floor. The usual rain keeps the abundance of life. One can’t seem to hear the birds chirp or the soft roar of the nearby river. A damp, peaceful wool forest.
As we walk amongst the forest of green, bright orange mushrooms sprawl over a fallen log. The dense fog rolled over the green, mossy ground with this comes an even deeper silence. One would think that the silence of her woods would not reach deeper, but now all that can be heard—a heartbeat. Is this mine or hers?
We continue our walk through this majestic path, the fog rolls away, yet not seeing another soul. I can see the river ahead, yet she still keeps the sounds tranquil. We reach the smooth, grey stoned river flat. Where the polished rocks meet the moss, the roar of the river may finally be heard. The sent changes, that of new earth to the raw water. The sun shines down on the fresh mountain stream, cold glacier water runs down my face as I take in all her beauty. The sun sparkles off the river like a broken wine glass, sharp yet smooth flickers of light.
The stones closer to the bank are smaller, the size of a silver dollar. A stone skips along the crystal clear weaves of water. I pick one up, its soft finish from thousands of years of tumbling down from the mountain, dancing through the river’s flows. The flick of a hand sends the stone, gliding over the ribbons of the weaves of the water.
I sit down. Perched on a bolder. The cold stone feels refreshing. Looking at the river, the forest. My mind wanders as the day passes.
Satisfied, I put my wool socks and boots back on, ready to begin the quiet walk back to reality.