In the Woods
a poem about connection
Before I heard of forest bathing
a lot of my childhood was spent
reflecting on girlhood crushes
and where I’d end up within
the next 30 years.
Trying on different personas seeing
which seemed to fit like a glove.
Teenage years brought sleepovers
on a trampoline in the middle of the
woods. Chanting campfire demons
before going to sleep waiting for
the Candyman or Bloody Murder
to show up. Trying not to
show how freaked out I was
internally to my best friend
at the time, the one who personified
time in nature- especially the woods.
I found woods at all colleges I attended
where I could just get alone with thoughts
and finish working on projects while calm.
It didn’t seem to matter if there was a marked
walkway or not, I loved the feeling of being home.
Jawsh lights a bowl in the semi woods in Carnegie
by the traintracks for himself and his brother.
I’m not into what they’re smoking but the danger
of being caught is what I get off on.
Sometimes I look back on those days and smile.
I was never meant to hold him, to marry him
but I did my damn best to love him every day
I had him- an investment that was worth it.
Tucker wants to explore the woods at the end
of the street- I keep him on the leash but let him
run through. He remarkably stays in spaces where
he won’t be so tangled up. I chuckle at his puppy
like tendencies despite being 10 years old.
He casts an interesting contrast to the sunrise
just beginning to peak through the trees.
