Once in a while we would leave our haven, to go to the local village store, which always meant, a little treat was on its way. Every visit to the store was exciting to me. I could taste it's sweetness in my mind, all the way there. What would it be? Ice cream, bubble gum, a chocolate bar, a lollipop, chips.....sugar was sacred to me.

There were many sweet moments in my life.

    Walking across the land, the farmer's fields of freshness growing from the earth, sometimes walking along the beach instead, with the incoming tide wetting my feet and the sand tickling between my toes, to visit the village children with my brother or alone. A stroll to play altogether, a game of our choice. We always played games in large groups, no one was exempt all were welcome. Each team could have multiple children. There was no age restriction, only the will to play. It was a time of gathering and having fun. We all worked  together making decisions and rules, surrendering respectfully to playfulness. There were no adults to supervise and tell us how to play, it was natural to get along. There was no fear, worry or danger, other than an occasional fall or scrape. We played endless hours, sometimes into the night playing hide and seek. There was unity, independence and above all freedom.

    Then the time would come to return home, to my sanctuary. My days were spent outdoors playing my heart’s desire with my dogs and cats, sometimes taking a nap with them in their dog houses. Every night, I would fall asleep to the lullaby sound of the waves echoing from the sea, whispering me sweet dreams.

    During the day, rising under the sparkling sun, my day would consist of observing the multiple kinds of insects in our garden, rolling down the sand dunes countless times mixing my hair with the sand, climbing the tree's as far up as I could go and sit feeling the breeze through the branches making the leaves dance, as they tickled my face and swimming in the sea refreshing my essence day after day.

 “When I discovered a new plant, I sat down beside it for a minute or a day, to make its acquaintance and hear what it had to tell... I asked the boulders I met, whence they came and whither they were going,"
-John_Muir

Photo taken by Adithetos Melourgos

    This was everyday life for me. A beautiful experience, that I carry gratefully with me to this day. It is an honor to have had the privilege to experience something so grand and beautiful. I will always be graciously thankful for the ground on which I walk and all of the earths living life.

    Since then, I have spent most of my life in solitude among the wondrous world of nature, forests, mountains, fields, and seas, and oceans.  Nature’s teachings have been my greatest source of wisdom and life and being who I am. Trees have always held a special place in my heart. Their beauty, diversity, strength, endurance, and character has always fascinated me. I have learned a great deal from them and continue to do so every day. Now I invite you to come along with me.

“Today I have grown taller from walking with the trees.”
— Karle Wilson Baker

Photo taken by Adithetos Melourgos