If A Tree Falls In The Forest, Will Anyone Write About It?

     I have always said that I like to LOOK at nature, I like to think I like nature, but I don't like nature.  There are way too many bugs and webs and too much dirt.  Seriously, nothing ruins an inspirational gaze upon the fall foliage like a stink bug right night to your purse.  Oh, nature.
     So it is only logical that I surprise my self with how quickly I can forget all of the bugs and such and enjoy the scenery.  When I went exploring in the woods with my freshman on Friday, a couple times I stopped and loudly proclaimed how beautiful the sight was, before freaking out about poison ivy possibilities and what not.  We painted my room not too long ago, and gone are the floor-to-ceiling pink walls: my room is a nice yellowy-green with light brown tree wall stickers interspersed with a pink deer, a pink owl, and pink birds.  I love staring at my mock-forest.  It transports me to an enchanted forest of my imagination.
     Lots of movies and TV shows have beautiful backdrops, be it cartoon princess movies such as Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, or Arrow and Reign.  A beautiful forest, a creepy forest, a mysterious forest, A PIECE OF LAND WITH A BUNCH OF TREES is a fabulous compliment to most stories.
     But why?
     Why are we first introduced to Narnia in Lantern Waste, a forest.  Why does Gibbs have a cabin in the woods on NCIS?  Why does Red Riding Hood have to take her treacherous journey through a forest, why not along the beach or in a jungle?
     Forests, like onions and ogres, have layers.  There's the forest floor, where animals can burrow beneath underbrush.  There's the trees, where owls can scare you and squirrels can scurry and leaves can fall.  There's dense forests, where it's hard to find your path, and there are forests with clearings so that  you can have a picnic.  Forests can hold many symbols and opportunities for a story to develop.  The trees can represent strength.  Dryads are tree spirits and in Narnia each tree has a different dryad form.  Trees have personality and stability, making them great representations of humans and tradition and such.  Forests can represent safety with all of its are in which to hide (like how Snow White hid in the forest, and Sleeping Beauty was sent away to hide in the forest).  Forests can also represent danger and mystery, like how in Hansel and Gretel the unknown of the forest became their near-death experience.

     I learned in bio that legends of vampires and werewolves may have stemmed from people's perception of real illnesses.  If someone is sensitive to sun and people mistake them for witches, fleeing to the forest may be their only hope of survival.  Forests are an integral part of many beloved stories.
     Forests are a great tool for stories because they have so much to offer a scene.  Atmosphere can really make a scene come alive, and with the right description of a forest, for forests come in many varieties, one can create an amazing scene that controls the reader's senses so that their imagination transports them to a world beyond their control.  Forests offer so much depth to a story, for many things are possible in a forest, especially an enchanted forest.  You never know who you will run into or how you will survive.
     Also, forests are really pretty.
     So, the next time you find yourself marveling at God's beautiful handiwork in the form of forests, I hope you feel inspired.

     After all, if a tree falls in a forest, and no one is around to see it, will people still write about it?