Alice in the park — after a rain in the woods.

A black earthen path—so soft, the kind of soil that’s perfect for plants to grow in after a rain. And a dark forest, with deep green trees stretching high up toward the sky—a sky that looked just as black, or perhaps as dark green, as the branches themselves.

Alice walked along, feeling her feet grow a bit damp; in places, the ground beneath her was quite wet.

“Oh dear, my feet are getting a little wet!” Alice said aloud. She realized this wasn’t ideal—one could easily catch a cold, after all! She really ought to be more careful where she stepped, and watch her footing more closely.

Though it mostly seemed dry, there were wet patches here and there—and it was so dim that it was hard to see exactly what lay underfoot. To make matters worse, cold droplets kept falling onto her head.

“So, it did rain here after all!” Alice remarked, sounding rather like an investigator—though mostly just to pass the time. Still, on the whole, it was a dry and quiet spot. How lucky that I didn’t get caught in the downpour, she thought to herself.

Every now and then, Alice spotted various plants—ferns, for instance—while in other places, there were none. Ferns must love moisture, she reasoned; where there are ferns, the ground is likely marshy, and where there are none, it’s dry. She concluded this with the knowing air of an expert. She continued on her way, observing the ferns growing—or not growing—along the sides of the path. But as she couldn’t discern anything further, she soon grew bored.

She tried to stick to the dry patches of ground, and for the most part, she managed quite well. All around her stood enormous trees. Large tree trunks stretched upward. There were spruces, too, along with other trees whose names she didn’t know. She noticed moss growing along the side of the path. In the distance, there was darkness; it was quite dim here.

“A bit too dark for having fun!” Alice remarked in a calm voice. There was no one else around, anyway, so she could freely talk to herself.

The forest stretched on—or perhaps it was Alice who kept moving forward. The trees shifted, and the path led further ahead. In some places, the trees seemed to grow in neat rows. Somewhere up ahead, there was an ant village, cleverly camouflaged within the woods. Surely, things would be more cheerful further on. Alice wandered, lost in her own thoughts.

She held her arms out to the sides as she walked, continuing like that for a while until she grew tired of it. The forest was dark and dense, yet Alice felt no fear. It was just like the space beneath one’s bed—if things are kept tidy, there are no monsters; they only inhabit the rooms of those who don’t clean up.

Alice continued on, calm and composed, gazing ahead. She wanted to see what might be hiding in the darkness in front of her. The darkness looked like a thick, dense texture, obscuring everything beyond it. There was no one there, after all.

“No one’s hiding here!” Alice said cheerfully, reassuring herself once more.

“What a forest! A truly magnificent, dense forest!” she exclaimed, her voice taking on a melodic, singing quality.

She felt an urge to sing, but decided against it, choosing instead to keep moving forward. A long journey lay ahead, and she simply had to reach her destination. And to reach it—one must keep walking! Such cheerful thoughts were running through her mind.

She kept walking, occasionally stepping into wet earth—though, for the most part, she managed to skirt around those patches. They weren’t quite puddles; the ground was simply damp from a recent light rain. Alice figured this out soon enough.