I suppose there are two types of adventures; those that are physical, and those that are emotional. But when I think of adventure, I think of the first kind, the classic kind. Those physical adventures that are fun and exciting. Where you explore a place that you’ve never been to before.
To me, adventure is exploration.
I grew up in a rural area, but it was only last year that I went exploring and found a place that I’d never seen before.
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If you head down a long and stony tractor road that runs between two fields you’ll find a modest copse of tall trees, and that’s where the buzzards live. You’ll probably hear them first, and then look up and see them in the top branches of the tall trees. Though in summer the grass grows high, you can still wander between the trees. One time I saw a crow in there, sitting on a tree stump quite peacefully.
One day however, I realised you can go even further. Because beyond this copse, you can find a forest.
As you approach, the trees take up more and more of the landscape. The thickness of the forest makes everything darker. But if you persist, you’ll be rewarded with the sight of my favourite place. And I call it; The Land that Time Forgot.
Now the forest has opened up, letting the sunlight back in. You’ll see a slow-moving stream runs through the whole area, with an overgrown grassy path on either side. Which themselves are lined by the evergreen trees. At the entryway is a crossroad. You could go right (following the stream), or left (heading upstream), to go straight ahead would take you across the solid but nettle-filled land bridge to the other side. Or, you could just go straight down the little slope to get a closer look at the stream.
Yet the best part about The Land that Time Forgot, is that you can’t see where it ends.
The Land that Time Forgot really gives the impression that you are its first human visitor: there’s no litter, no sounds of vehicles, or of people. What you will hear are insects buzzing as they fly about, and the birds that coo at you for disrupting their peace as you walk past them. In this place, all of the plants grow so tall with no one to step on them. And I swear the insects here are so much larger than in other places. The air is clean and refreshing, and on bright days the whole place seems to shine.
I want to use the word overgrown to describe this place, but to do so seems negative, it gives the connotation of a lack of order, that it needs changing to be made perfect.
But it doesn’t, The Land that Time Forgot looks just as it should.
Untouched.
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And so it’s the perfect place to explore. I dare myself to walk further and further each time. There’s always something to discover; a cool-looking insect, little fish in the stream, or a narrow little walkway over the stream – will it hold me? And what’s on the other side?
My little Land-that-Time-Forgot, is not an adventure that has shaped who I am. It hasn’t altered my character, or given me a new perspective. And despite all of that, I still consider it a worthwhile adventure.
Because being there makes me feel happy, it makes me feel brave, it makes me feel like I’m in another world. And the best part is that I still haven’t explored it all. There are more adventures to come.