"Stay out of the Haunted Forest!" The woodsman roared to his colleague over the raging wind, his words snatched from his mouth and shredded by the growing storm. He clutched tightly to his axe, also being pulled from his grip, as he continued his frantic warning. "It is possessed!"
"An interesting thought," the Forest replied. "For possession implies I am held against my will. It implies dominance, ownership, that I am not in control of my own behaviour. It implies that I lack choice within the relationship, and that I am without the power to end it. In fact, this could not be further from the case."
Her words were lost amongst the creaking of her boughs, and so the men could not hear them. She tried again.
"The dark spirits do me no harm when they crawl beneath my branches, when they lurk within my trunks. They would do you harm, yes, if you attempted to destroy their home, and I know you have the scars to prove it. If you view my trees as your property, these spirits are a problem, but I do nothing of the sort. To me, they cause no harm. In fact, as you do cause harm, and they keep you away, they do me a great service."
Again, her thoughts were drowned amongst the rustling leaves, and so the men could not hear them. She continued to try.
"The term you are looking for, in stead of possession, is mutualistic symbiosis. I provide shelter to the spirits. In turn, they provide me with protection. You believe that you possess me, you treat me as your own, you attempt to dominate and control me. The spirits do none of these things. I ask you, then, when was I truly possessed? It may be that, rather than possession, they have provided the opposite. Do not enter the Forest, you might say; it is liberated. It is freed from your grasp, and therefore dangerous for those still grasping."
Her insights were suppressed by a sudden susurration, foliage shivering in the howling gale, and went unimparted. Growing frustrated, the Forest raised her voice.
"I am glad to house these spirits, because they do not harm me. I am glad that they keep you away, because you indubitably would. Haunted? I am haunted only by the prospect of your blades on my skin, your hands on my soft flesh. It is your arrogance which defines "possession" as absence of your own control, your ego which calls "haunted" that most at peace from your torment. For once in my life, I am not possessed, and I am not haunted. I am free, where your freedom stops. I am safe, where your safety stops. Tell me not what that says about me, but what is says about you."
However, as the storm reached its climax, the men were overwhelmed by the whipping of branches, the groaning of bark, and the snapping of unfortunate twigs.
Once again, they couldn't hear the Forest for the trees.
