Lost in the Woods
The spring of 2010 had been difficult for my entire family, especially for my mom. What with everything changing so quickly and so dramatically, it was understandable that she had been itching to get away from the house. That’s also why it didn’t come as a surprise when my mom announced that we would be going somewhere for spring break. I was surprised, however, when she said we’d be going out of state to Ohio, and without the boys. Grace, my sister who was two years older than me, had never been outside of Michigan before and neither had I, so we were both ecstatic when we had heard the news. We spent the following days leading up to spring break packing feverishly for our first big vacation. Grace and I both agreed we’d make it one remember.
We waste no time, as soon as Grace and I get off the bus we rush to…show more content… Once Mom has the car parked in the shade and cuts the engine I unbuckle myself, grab my polar bear stuffed animal, and hop out. We set out on our hike after Mom checks out a map at the beginning of trail. I’m still bitter about the shop incident and the more I think about it the more upset I get. Anger washes over me and I feel like I’m burning from the inside out. I decide I need my space to cool down, so I deliberately quicken my pace until I’m around the bend and I can no longer see them. I stray from the dirt path and wander through the thick brush into the woods, my temperature dropping back to normal. I look around me and for the first time since we arrived, I notice how beautiful the woods are. Lush greenery surrounds me, the dew laden grass soft beneath the soles of my shoes. Maple trees tower over me, casting long, eerie shadows. I splay my hand across the trunk of nearby tree, the bark is coarse and cracked, like old china. I see a pileated woodpecker a couple yards away boring a rectangular hole into one of the dead maple