Forest Dreaming

a collaborative project with the Film Shooters Collective

photo copyright of Lilly Schwartz

Am I sleepwalking
rather than forest bathing?
Has the guardian of this mysterious place
put me in a trance

that I might become one of the 12%
who dream in black and white

that my perspective might shift –

from how this moment,
these aches in my shins,
those past treks
colorize my Walk –

to the form, shape, and textures
of the oaks, birch, yews,
and pathways within?

Some say forest dreams
are images of resistance.
Of refusal to let go

to move forward
into the thicket ahead,
even if on tippy toe,
with no expectations except Trust.

I see You, there to my left,
left as Signpost
for what I will indeed
leave behind — whether
You are a dryad, Faunus Himself,
or a trick of light from the right
showered in shadow.