The “Sea of Trees” collects the souls lost to despair. A Spirits at Lighthouses Entry |
Aokigahara - The Suicide Forest Aokigahara, “Sea of Trees,” collects the souls lost to despair. Its siren call offers reprise when life becomes too much to bear. Shoes placed neatly line the path I wander in the muted light. Each pair a silent epitaph to those who chose an endless night. A whisper crying from the past; a spectral shape that fades from view deep in the woods. No shadows cast from branches seemingly askew. The pungent smell of age and rot hangs in the air, lays on the tongue. A weathered rope, its fraying knot collapsed below where once it hung. Hidden ‘neath the bloated ground, reminders of each victim’s loss lie undisturbed, no longer bound, slowly decaying in the moss. I feel the Bōrei1 watching me, each face a mask of agony. Their empty eyes, their silent plea, asking me to set them free. The air turns cold. I see my breath. I feel their hands reach futilely to claim a moment’s pause from death. Thus will it be eternally. The sun shines brightly overhead but cannot breach the canopy. There is no relief for the dead, only unending misery. I stumble back into the light, the journey has taken its toll. Released from the forest’s blight I seek to heal my wounded soul. An entry for the June round of "Spirits at Lighthouses Challenge" Prompt: Forest image Form: End Rhyme ABAB Line Count: 36 Aokigahara is a real place. Footnotes |