I think about the
layers of the forest.
The emergent treetops
peaking out above
the canopy where
birdsong fills the air
fleshed out with life
and leaves, branches
swaying in the wind
over the understory
where I count
wildflowers
with my kids
as we hike;
walking along the
forest floor where
we pick mushrooms
to cook for dinner
and find snails
and rocks
and rollie pollies.
The air feels different
in the realm of
these four layers,
it smells like decay
and growth
and potential,
and every small detail
of spiderwebs
and dew drops
and deer tracks
brings peace to us
in the chaos
of our world.