Feeling freedom

The smell of dirt and pine is clear,
The birds and crickets sing evermore.
There’s no dread or sinking fear,
As I walk across the forest floor.

The dappled light dances for me,
With a choir of wind swaying the leaves.
Soon I’ll know what it's like to be free,
To escape and enter the summer’s eve.

A false sense of welcome greets me so,
Instinctive creatures hide from my gaze.
Will they welcome me as I grow
And earn the wooded mountain’s praise?

But for now, I walk back to the unknown,
My back turned against the wind.
I retreat from the woods like a sinking stone,
The light of the sun forever dimmed.