ADD #2 Patti Higgins

The Secrets of the Forest

Jimmy felt the soft pine needles on the forest floor beneath his feet, cushioning his steps from the solid earth below. He wandered through the forest behind his cozy cabin home on many an occasion, to ponder life and earth and freedom, or anything else that would come to mind, but this day was different. There was a strange feeling in the air, a breeze of deception, a scent of change, a lingering eeriness. Fear shot up his spine as the branches tossed in a sudden wind, tapping him on the shoulder, from behind the impending darkness, brought on by the setting sun.

Snow began to fall, ever so lightly. He focussed on individual flakes, catching them on his black suede gloves, watching them slowly melt into oblivion, as the moonlight brought on a calm that put his nerves at ease.

The snow-kissed leaves began to glisten as the moonbeams danced from tree to tree. This put a smile on Jimmy's face as he turned his face to the sky and closing his eyes he felt each snowflake that gently touched his cheek and lips. This was his first walk in the woods since the accident, and he remembered wondering if he would ever see these familiar sites again.