“I promise we’ll spend the rest of the time just soaking it all in,” he said, “but I want you to try this one activity because I always feel like we have a lot of fun with it.”
When the guide had finished explaining, Corinthia had to admit it did sound kind of fun.They were to choose a section of the trail and define it as a room; give it a name; notice details like the furniture, or decor, or where the windows and doors might be; and take note of the quality of light and the aroma.
Just like a home, he said.Or a “green mansion.”
Corinthia, who had already drawn a parallel to Castle Adventure during her past trips, was both pleased by her own initiative and a bit embarrassed to have already been playing such a game without even being told to do so.
“Let’s go this way,” Stevie said.“I know the perfect place.”
Corinthia and Drew followed.
The trail turned sharply like a hallway corner before opening into a space, about twice the size of Corinthia’s living room, that was defined by a carpet of brown pine needles.The surrounding trees were less dense than in the hallway; less tangled; and Corinthia could see individual oak tree trunks, low-lying palmettos, and several more types of bushes she couldn’t identify.Beyond the pine needle carpet lay a small, sparkling body of water, and she realized that this was the smaller of the two Ephemeral Wetlands, only approached from a different angle.
“Ta-da!”said Stevie.
“Cool,” Drew said, appreciatively crossing her arms and giving Stevie an approving nod.
“I think this is a living room,” Stevie said.“The pine needles make up the shag carpet.And this palmetto cluster—if you squint, it’s one of those oversized couches.The small bushes are ottomans.And if you look through the trees this way”—she pointed to the trunks framing the view of the water—“those are windows looking out on the lawn.It needs to be cut,” she added, pointing to the grass that poked out of the edge of the wetland.“The branch on the ground is one of those driftwood coffee tables with a glass top—invisible, see?—and you could sit here in the afternoon and look out on the neighborhood and drink your coffee, or your hot chocolate, or what have you.”
“All right,” Drew said, clearly impressed and ready to build on Stevie’s riff.“Check this out,” Drew gestured to what, at first, seemed like nothing more than a wall of branches.“It’s a food truck.”
Stevie and Corinthia came over and gave the area a closer look.
The low, round bushes made convincing wheels.The shape of the trees suggested the body of the vehicle, and the break in the foliage created a pass-through.Corinthia could imagine hot dogs and frothy orange drinks being handed out.Playing “green mansions” was like cloud-watching, only the visions didn’t dissolve with the wind.Corinthia knew she would see this “food truck” from that day forward, unfailingly, whenever she passed by this area of the Refuge.
“What about you, Corinthia?”Stevie said.
Corinthia turned and looked down a path.It was one she had been down before, but now she saw it differently.“I see library shelves,” she said, “made of branches.And leaf-colored books in a row.”
The guide approached.“Did you all find any green mansions?”
“A living room, a food truck, and a library,” Stevie reported.
He reached for a nearby branch.“You could serve this on your food truck.”It was one of the same kind of pine tree Corinthia had conversed with.He pulled off a few of the newest, greenest needles, and handed them to Corinthia, Stevie, and Drew.Then he popped one in his own mouth and chewed.“Not bad.Makes a nice tea.Mighty interesting soda, too.”
Drew bit into her pine needle first.She chewed thoughtfully.“Citrusy,” she said.
“Good, huh?”Stevie said, nibbling her own needle.
Had Corinthia been alone in the Refuge, there might not have been enough motivation to put a piece of a tree in her mouth—but with Stevie, Drew, and the genial guide happily chowing down, she felt it would be unreasonable not to join them.
She bit down on the pine needle, fearful it would have a jagged edge against her tongue, but it was not too rough, and it released its flavor not unlike a thin shred of fresh sugar cane between her teeth.Meyer lemon candy, she thought instantly.Just like the ten-cent wrapped candy sticks from when she was a child.
The forest guide regarded her with a benignly curious expression.“Did you get an answer to your question?”
“Not yet,” Corinthia said.
He nodded thoughtfully.“Have you tried giving something back to the forest?”
“Not recently.”
“You might try that.”He ambled off again, this time to a group who appeared to have laid full-out on the sand to enthusiastically point out shapes in the clouds.
“I think that’s a lovely idea, to give back to the forest,” Stevie said.“What shall we give?”
Drew was already pouring a little water on a thirsty-looking patch of moss.“Want to pour some water?”Drew asked Stevie.
“Oh, yes please!”
