As a child, I went to spend the afternoons in the forest with my little brother and friends, constructing shelters, playing games, building spears and bow & arrow, and once in a while also playing with fire. It was a great time. We lived less than five minutes walking from the forest, and it was our home away from home.



The forest. An important part for our life on this planet, an integral part of our ecosystem. Luckily, here in Finland - the country in Europe with the most trees - forest is abundant. While much of it is commercial forest, destined as ending up as paper in books, packages, toilet paper, in furniture and toys, or in a sauna stove, it still is beautiful. Old-grown forest is protected, showing what real forest once looked like. Lets hope it stays that way, for our children to enjoy.



By day, it is that place where you are a basic, simple, human being again. You are you, walking, skiing, snowshoeing or biking through it. Following game trails or making your own prints. You're alive, breathing fresh, clean air, seeing the goshawk chasing a hare, the tracks of an elk and hear the call of the cuckoo.



When night falls, you are still you, but something primal awakes in you. The fear of the dark creeps up your spine. You look at the trees, which during the day gave you shadow and were friendly, and see different shapes forming. The call of a Pygmy Owl scares you. The flickering flames of the fire give you warmth and comfort, but you feel that they attract a lot of eyes. Then, when dawn arrives, and the first light blue and orange hues appear over the black tree tops, you feel an inner peace and calmness flowing through you. The forest protected you.



I like the forest.