#wildlife

The morning was calm as the sun rose between the mountains. There was nothing Papa ever wanted more than a home in the woods, its silence was soothing to him, unlike the bustle and noise of the city. I preferred the city, the quiet environment of the woods creeped me out. It was winter, the cold air, and white snow. Papa had already driven to work, and my school bus was to arrive soon. I ran out of our small house and looked down at my watch, 7:00. There were still a few more minutes before the bus came. I looked at the tall bare trees around me.

“A small walk wouldn’t be so bad” I mumbled to myself as I walked through a small path behind the house. The snow made a small soft crunching sound underneath my new red boots. A cool breeze swept past me as I walked, and soon the silence was lifted.

“The forest is waking up” Papa had said once when we were exploring one morning.

Sunlight streamed through the trees now. My eyes were drawn to the snow on the ground, as I tucked my hands into my jacket pocket. I did not understand why Papa loved the forest so much, just a bunch of tall trees and small animals. I used to love to take walks around the stores, malls, and theaters around our old home. The stores always had something interesting in their showcase windows. All there was in the woods were trees but there was something comforting about it, maybe that’s why Papa loved the woods so much I wondered as I walked around some more, lost in my thoughts. I went deeper and deeper into the forest, farther and farther from home.

“Growl!”

I shot back to reality. The wind was a slight bit colder, it was snowing. How could I not have noticed that before? I looked around. I have never been to this part of the forest. For how long have I been walking? I looked down at my watch…30 minutes!

I looked around for some signs that would lead me home. That’s what I did back in our old home, when I was ever lost I would either call Papa or I would look for something familiar that would lead me home. Nothing, the woods had nothing, and all the trees looked the same. I reached down into my pockets to grab my phone and use Google Maps, but they were empty. The falling snow covered up my tracks. It felt hopeless. I searched around for a place to sit and soon found a giant rock. I sat down thinking, trying to remember which way I had gone. I felt mad at myself for getting lost.

“Be quiet, listen closely” Papa smiled the day we moved into our cabin, he looked at me and then closed his eyes. I had plastered a fake smile and closed my eyes as he did, but I was not listening. I was listing all the things that could go wrong about Dad and me moving in my head. I rolled my eyes.

“What else did Papa say?” I wondered out loud. I tried clearing my head like Papa had told me to do, so long ago in third grade. I sighed, no idea popped into my head, not what I was expecting. I rolled my eyes again, what now! I sat there feeling cold, mad, and scared.

“Growl!” I heard again.

I glanced around, but nothing. I must be dreaming. Just then in the corner of my eye, I saw something reddish move in the shrubs. I got up and stayed very quiet. I stiffened as the figure moved closer. Quickly I grabbed a stick that was lying around in the snow. The red figure stayed in the shadows, as I planted my feet on the ground. Keeping a close eye on my surroundings. Just then the figure jumped from the bush it was hiding in. It was a small fox. I loosened my grip on my stick. I stared at the fox trying to hide any signs of fear on my face.

The fox sniffed around and then looked up, her beady eyes stared straight into mine. It was like this for a couple of minutes before I blinked. The fox ran away through a small path I did not notice earlier. The path looked familiar somehow. I followed the fox as it took a turn. I tiptoed trying to make the least amount of noise I could. Soon we came to a bunch of trees each marked with a blue arrow pointing right. Papa marked each tree in case we both ever got lost. The fox stood still for some time then she scurried away leaving me alone.

I smiled and followed the marked trees, taking every turn in caution, soon I saw our little cabin. I glanced at my watch again, “8:00” I read. My bus will come at 8:10. I rushed to the bus stop that was a little far from the cabin. Just in time, I thought as the big yellow bus stopped in front of me. I stepped into it, glancing behind, I guess the woods weren’t so bad, and actually, they are pretty exciting.