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Hey, thanks for being a part
of the conversation. This is Forest Stories.

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I am the Poet in the Forest, a children's series that I pinned

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out in the nineteen nineties. Now, none of it would be possible if

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it wasn't for this forest right here
in South Charlotte, North Carolina. I

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talk about it so much that I
thought maybe it's time that you get to

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know what has inspired me for thirty
years. Thanks for being a part of

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the conversation. Welcome back to the
forest. Springtime in this forest, not

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a very tiny forest, but springtime, the daffodils are poked up. They're

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proud, they blow with the spring
breeze and the tiny little purple flowers that

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appear almost out of nowhere. But
because you've taken the time to slowly stroll

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through this forest, you're allowed to
feel what the atmosphere is willing to share

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with you, and following witness to
the beauty of these purple little flowers that

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come from out of nowhere. It's
music. It's just something that touches your

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soul in a way that says,
yeah, you're here, you're present.

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Soon the dogwoods will be blossoming and
all the other flowers that have been planted

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inside their gardens. One thing that
I'm very excited about this year is that

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new neighbor Steve has built this beautiful, this beautiful above ground garden. Now

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around here we have a lot of
deer. I love me some deer,

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but they like to eat everything.
But I'm excited to find out what he's

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going to plant inside this above ground
garden in the way of bringing new beginnings

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to this area of the forest.
To share with other people what you're creating.

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I believe in the fruit that we
can all bring to others, and

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this forest really is a place for
fruit. I'm hoping that it inspires others

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within this forest to build their above
ground gardens so that we can all share

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like a real commune. We've talked
about the bee farmer. The bee farmer

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shares his honey every single year.
We've talked about how these trees have offered

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a shade, and even this slow
moving stream inside this forest moving to that

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lake. There's just something very peaceful
about how it likes to just take its

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southern time. It probably has a
Southern accent just as much oh springtime in

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Carolina, especially this forest take the
time to look for the invisible flowers.

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They're there. They want to be
seen, they want to be listened to.

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Thanks for being a part of the
conversation.