A Voice in the Forest

I feel at home in the forest—it’s as if nature is part of me and I am part of it. At school, we learn that trees provide oxygen and life for everything on Earth, but they mean so much more than that to me. The birds in the trees, the forest mice scurrying through the ferns, the squirrels running up and down tree trunks, the monkeys leaping from branch to branch, even the butterflies fluttering in and out of the trail, they’re all a part of me and they’re my friends.

As I was hurrying along on my way to Master Soong's hut, I was a little surprised but not especially alarmed, when I heard a somewhat raspy voice call out to me, “Hey, giant, watch where you’re going! You almost squashed me.” I stopped and looked around, trying to find out who it was that had spoken to me so rudely. I looked up the trail; there wasn’t anyone in front of me. I turned around to look behind me to see if I’d been followed; there was no one there, nor was there anyone beside me. I scanned the trees; perhaps a bird had been speaking to me. Indeed, there were birds in the trees—lots of them. They were noisily chatting among themselves, as usual, some even singing beautiful songs; however, none of them were paying any attention to me. I spun around really fast, making sure nothing was hiding behind my back. Again nothing there.

Should I be afraid? I wondered to myself. Could this be some creature from the Dark stalking me?

“You’re very impolite,” I called out to the voice, My face got hot and my pulse quickening, “How dare you call me a giant.”

I planted my feet and began curling my fists into a ball. I wanted to be ready. I slowed down my breathing, centered myself, and carefully began probing the forest for signs of this creature.

The little voice with the sour attitude spoke back to me. “Well, you're a lot of high-and-mighty talk for a creature that smells like a wet dog!"

Well, I'm just saying what my eyes and nose tell me!”

“Well then, tell me---what do you see and smell?” I was curious to know what the elusive creature was talking about.

“A giant! You!” the voice answered back.

“Well, you’re very presumptuous to assume that I’m a giant. Have you ever actually met a real giant?” I asked the creature as I kept looking through the weeds and bushes, trying to find it. "Some giants are very friendly and quite well behaved."

“No, I haven’t. But my friends have told me all about them—they’re big, noisy, and horribly smelly. None of them well behaved.”

“And how can you be so sure that your friends know what they’re talking about or that I am in fact a bad person. You don’t even know me.” I kept the creature talking so that I could follow its voice and find it.

“Perhaps you have a point. I don’t know you, but you have to admit ... you’re very big and noisy, much like a giant, and you do smell dreadful. Furthermore, you almost squashed me with your huge, lumbering feet. Exactly what a giant would do! There’s simply no other explanation—you must be a giant.”

By this time I was becoming very irritated with the creature. I certainly didn’t like being called a giant, implying I was bad; it was very insulting. In all my wandering through the forest, I’d never come across such an insolent creature, and I’d never been accused of smelling dreadful ... or having huge feet.

I followed the voice and walked over to a patch of wild orchids, bent down, and looked through the orange blossoms. They were just beginning to open up into beautiful flowers. I poked around and gently pushed them aside to have a look between the stalks. Besides a frightened yellow butterfly, there was only a caterpillar that was busy making a cocoon on the branch of a wild lilac bush.

“Where are you?” I asked again.

“Down here, ya big ogre!” came another rude reply from the creature.

Following the voice, I turned my eyes downward and searched the trail again. I saw decaying leaves, some cicada molts, and a couple of crumbly pinecones. Nothing more. But then, out of the corner of my eye I saw something wriggling near the edge of the trail. There it was, kind of hidden inside a tiny clump of dry, browning grass. Lying not far away from my worn-out sneakers—a stag beetle, six tiny legs wiggling in the air, frantically rocking back and forth, trying to flip itself right side up.

“Oh! There you are. Did I do this to you?” I breathed a sigh of relief and reached down and picked up the distressed insect. “I’m so very sorry,” I said. “Let me help you.” I brought the insect up to my face and looked at it closely, eye to eye. “Please, forgive me, little bug. I’m in a hurry to see my teacher, and I didn’t see you walking along the trail with me.”

Normally, stag beetles are very brave creatures—not afraid of anything—but it was looking up at the bushes of black hairs inside my nostrils and must’ve really been spooked by them. The bug squirmed and kicked its legs trying to escape the firm grip of my hand.

“Let me go!” it shouted as loudly as it could. “I didn’t do anything to you.”

“Calm down,” I said.

My warm breath blew over the insect; it must’ve felt like a hot, summer gale about to blow it away.

“Please, don’t eat me,” the beetle begged.

“Ha-ha, you’re a cute little bug,” I giggled. The thought of me eating a beetle had never even occurred to me. “Of course, I won’t eat you. I like you ... now that I know who you are.”

“Well, you’re very scary,” squealed the terrified insect, all the while snipping its long pincers open and shut, threatening to take a good nip at my nose.

“I’m sorry for knocking you over. Please, forgive me. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“Well, I guess you’re forgiven. But a giant like you must be more careful when stomping through the forest. You nearly killed me! And not just me; you could’ve killed any of us little creatures with your big feet!"

“I understand,” I said, “and I promise, from now on, I’ll be more attentive.”

“Hmph! A promise from a giant,” grumbled the beetle. “Means nothing, does it?”

“Well, I’m sorry that I’ve upset you, but I must correct you once more. I’m not a giant; I’m just a sixth grade student at Running Boar Elementary School. And after visiting my teacher in the forest, I’ll be in class with other kids my age. And I assure you that none of us are giants'

“How can I take your word for anything?" It said. "To me, you’re definitely a giant.” The beetle was obviously still scared and enraged that I had almost squashed it, but it tried its best to be polite. “Any creature as enormous and foul-smelling as you must surely be up to no good.”

I was sure I wasn’t a giant but wondered if the beetle was right about me smelling bad. Perhaps I did stink. I sniffed my underarms and wrinkled my nose. I was sweaty and did smell a little like wet gym socks.

“You are a funny little beetle,” I giggled. “You keep insulting me ... but I still like you. It’s true: I am a bit smelly. I have been running through the forest, and it’s very warm this morning. But, I’m telling you, I’m not a giant. I’m only a little girl.” I sat the beetle back down at the side of the trail and replied, “There you go, my little friend. Perhaps we’ll meet again someday.”

The beetle turned its head and looked up at me. “Thank you for not eating me. Next time, please, be more considerate of smaller animals. We may not look very important to enormous creatures like yourself, but every animal in the forest matters, and we all have something important to do.”

As I started to walk away, the forest became silent, there was a gentle breeze blowing through the trees. Caw, caw... an eagle screeched above me.

"Come back here!" The beetle shouted, this time angry and powerful.

I snapped around and went back to talk to see what the creature wanted.

This time its voice was not raspy but deeper and as if it was coming from somewhere else. “Sondra, the Dark is moving. You must stop it!”

“What!” I said. I didn't understand what the beetle meant. I bent down to pick the insect up.

Reverting back to it's raspy voice, the beetle said, “Why are you still here? I thought you had already left?”