The trees danced through the forest as the wind brushed against my face while I strolled through my tranquil hideout. Sometimes I can feel the ocean breeze from here, the positive side of living on the peninsula. This is the best place to be on a summer day like today. As soon as I climb to the top of the grandfather old tree, I can see my mother and father and the rest of our village. On the other side of the peak, I spot a couple of familiar people though I barely know the people living on that side of the mountain.
The soil is thin and rocky. My feet sting as I climb down and tiptoe my way over to the olive tree. Of course, I left my sandals at home, otherwise mother would scold me for leaving the village. I didn’t care, I’ve almost built a resistance to the pain of the rocks injecting into my feet.
I came here to rest under the blanket of shade the olive tree hands to me. My father farms olives from these trees for a living. I love when I get to come with him to the harbors and begin shipping out the olives. This tree, in particular, acts as our biggest pantry. Papa and I always find the most olives here.
The hike up this mountain, a mountain that my father and I call καπετάνιος in Greek, or Captain in English, is one of the grandest mountains in the Pindus Mountains. I kneel down as my knees scratch the rocky dry ground. The ground here is like thorns ready to prick you. I carefully brush the rocks aside and take a nice seat.
Under the shade of the olive tree I gently close my eyes as the leaves of the heavily forested mountains drift onto me. The wind whistles, and I dream of the tranquility around me. A splash of heat indulges me as the wind slowly dies down. I slowly began to relax, ready to escape the hardships of tomorrow. I know that this tree will protect me. Being an only child, this is my friend.
I snuggle up against his grand bark trunk and fall into a deep sleep, for my voyage back to the village will be treacherous as I can easily slip on the rocks. I ignore this and continue to dream, dream of the future, where I may not need to struggle as much.
Wink Literary Magazine 