A Walk in the Woods

Embracing the beauty of nature

I’ve lived here for about three months now but I still haven’t explored much. I’ve done one or two walks when my parents came to visit. That’s about it. The rest of the time I was either working or at home. Writing.

But this should change now. After months of separation from my partner, we are finally reunited again. With lots of excitement and energy, I am going to show him the beautiful area I (we) live in.

Starting off with a first hike in the forest.

It’s a beautiful afternoon. The sun is shining on this first day in September. The sky is blue. Birds are chirping and the leaves are gently moving in the wind. Tall trees stand high above our heads.

We are taking a chilled walk on the gravel path. In the forest, the temperature is much cooler. The sun shines through the rooftop but doesn’t burn us. We are embracing the silence.

Time to look out for the small things in life. Those tiny beauties. Flowers, plants, and mushrooms. My boyfriend is asking if this mushroom is eatable. I have no clue. I never used to eat mushrooms. Only for a few years now, I do enjoy them.

But I have zero knowledge about the mushrooms growing in our forests. You can only pick them if you are one hundred and ten percent sure that it is not a poisonous one. And I’m not. So, don’t touch it.

I don’t know the name of these plants either but they remind me of hikes in the alps with my dad. I’ve seen them a lot at high altitude. Where barely anything else would grow they bloom in full power.

And here they cover the ground of the forest.

They attract bees and other insects.

After a stretch through the thick forest, we’re getting to an area where lots of trees were cut off. The sun is burning down on us. I wonder why they cut all these trees in this area. Maybe those trees were sick and had to get eliminated. Because one can see that they try to regrow the forest here as fast as possible. Lots of trees have been planted and are protected from animals with fences.

As we’re getting back into the forest we see a beautiful stretch of thick green ground next to us. The scene has a fairytale kind of look. Moss is covering most of the ground. We leave the gravel road and walk into the woods. Softly stepping on the moss.

I wouldn’t have been surprised if a fairy would have popped up in front of me. Just so unreal the whole surrounding. Unreal but yet so real. Nature in its beauty.

As we are turning and heading back to town on a different trail we walk past a small pond. A few water lilies swim across the water. It’s quiet. What a wonderful scene. So peaceful.

Closer to town more fields of grass appear and we get to watch a bird looking for worms in the ground. He’s loud. Making noise and jumping around. Now and then picking in the ground for some insects.

On the hill of the other side, we see two beautiful white horses galloping across the field. They seem happy. The way they jump. And run. Sometimes you even hear them neigh.

The church bell is ringing. It’s six o’clock. Not only time for the farmers to go home from the fields but also time for the horses to go back inside. But they are not ready yet. They are turning one more round in their territory.

Back in the village, we see several beautifully shaped gardens. Trees full of apples and pears. A bench is inviting the tired hiker to take a rest. To take a rest and enjoy the view.

Not long after we get back to the flat I can hear the first raindrops falling. We did see the rain clouds building up on the horizon. But I didn’t think they would reach us. Now, we got a roof above our heads. And now it starts to come down.

The sun is shining right in front of us. Just above the horizon. It’s almost sunset. But the sky behind us is black. Thick rain clouds are covering the sky. It looks amazing. These heavy raindrops are falling onto earth. Softly vanishing due to the heat of the day.

They are getting more and more. And one by one they become stronger. The sun is still there. Creating a rainbow on the other side of her. It’s a lovely scene.

I love these summer rains.

They remind me of my childhood days. When I was playing in the rain. Running barefoot down the street jumping into puddles splashing as much as possible.

It rains for about an hour and stops just after sunset again. No more clouds. No more moisture left in the sky. The sky is getting painted in different yellow and orange colors.

What a wonderful day we spend together. In the woods. In nature.

Because I love being outdoors. Breathing in the fresh air. Listening to the wind. Feeling the sun on my skin. Looking for animals.

That is living life at its fullest.