Speaker 1: Hey, thanks for being a part of the conversation. This
is Forest Stories. I'm the Poet in the Forest, a
children's series that I pinned out in the nineteen nineties. Now,
none of it would be possible if it wasn't for
this forest right here in South Charlotte, North Carolina. I
talk about it so much that I thought maybe it's
time that you get to know what has inspired me
for thirty years. Thanks for being a part of the conversation.
Welcome back to the forest. I've always called it the
bag of shame. Yeah, I'm that dog owner that doesn't
leave the house without bags of shame inside their pockets.
Hold on a second here and talk about the bag
of shame. But look at this. Oh my god, a
beautiful red feather from a cardinal. That's a gift from
the universe. Wow, that's awesome. See it's amazing when you
take the time to really step into this forest and
take a look at the small things, the things that
we tend to walk above and beyond, around through under,
and we don't pay attention to something as simple as
a cardinal's feather. It looks like a wing feather. No, no, no,
definitely a tail feather because of the length. But let's
get back to the bag of shame. When you're taking
your dog walking through this forest or any other forest, well,
look at this, it's another feather. What are the chances
that within maybe fifteen twenty steps I go from a
cardinal feather to now I've got a blue jay feather.
This force is so giving today that it just fills
your heart with so much joy that they are so
willing to share their feathers with you because feathers are flight,
feathers are outreach. Feathers give warmth. Feathers have so much
purpose in a bird's life, and if you take the
time to look at the gifts that they've had, then
you're able to feel the joy in your own personal life.
But wow, not close a cardinal feather and a blue
jay's feather. But do we really need to get back
into the bag of shame? Because the feathers seem to
be the bigger, better story here, and the bag of
shame is exactly what you think it is. And all
I was going to do is put focus on that
I'm the guy that does carry all the bags with him.
And the reason why is because how many people actually
have their dogs in this forest, and if you're not
paying attention to the forest floor, you're going to step
into something that should belong to a bag of shame.
But the story much bigger today, A true gift from
those that fly, from those that give us songs in
the middle of the day, from those that just like
to share something as simple as a feather. I smiled
like a child, and that's why this forest is so
so important. Hey, thanks for being a part of the conversation.