Humans have an ambivalent relationship with the wood: it stands for both solitude and independence.

In the wood, people feel lonely – especially at night, when orientation becomes difficult and eerie sounds drain their courage. Artificial intelligence and computers are of no help here. The mobile phone is only useful as long as there’s reception and the battery lasts. After that, we are on our own.

At the same time, the wood is a place of peace. Thanks to the absence of network coverage, no buzzing or ringing phone disturbs the soothing rustle of the leaves. The earthy scent of the woodland floor is balm for noses weary of the smells of civilization. The steady scenery soothes eyes strained from staring at screens. No one disturbs.

On, around and underneath the trees, thousands of beings crawl and creep. The cycle of the seasons governs life and death. The wood is an ever-regenerating system whose parts complement each other in natural symbiosis.

The wood is enduring. A human life leaves little more than a few extra rings in the trunk. Its mystery and beauty existed long before humankind – and will outlast us.

Will it, and its beings, miss us when we are gone?