Deep in the forest, there is a bed so vividly green we can imagine no better embodiment of photosynthesis.
We trudge on pebbles and mud, following the flow of the Oirase stream. We exhale gently for the hike is not hard going and the trail well marked. The mosses harvest the carbon dioxide we release; they soak up the sunlight. They make food for themselves and for the forest.
We inhale the clean air deeply, our eyes so moved they water.
Our bodies relax, our minds wander easily. We stay in one spot for hours or walk for miles. It doesn’t matter. Time rolls more slowly, our hearts beat more freely. We hear a vanishing voice that is now joyfully present, true and clear once more.
It is our own.