Life is full of unexpected surprises.

There are many opportunities when one can

secretly wish for something exciting to happen – something out of the ordinary.
The real surprise is when the wish unexpectedly comes true. I never believed
that something like this could ever happen to me; such a thing that would make
me stop and look back at the events in awe. I think you would agree that
something as simple as being lost in the forest for less than ten minutes should
have no influence on my life. If you do agree, that makes both of us wrong.

Throughout my childhood, I loved the wild. My family and I would always go for a
walk in the downtown forest of Coote’s Paradise. There were many times I
thought of what could happen if we were to lose our way from the trail and have
to live off of the land until we found our way back to civilization. I thought it would
be the greatest experience ever.

As my brothers and I grew older, we continued to go for these walks with our
parents but the dreams of living in the forest I soon forgot. That’s when it
happened. We decided to take a different path off the main trail. Before I knew it,
the path had disappeared and no one in my family could tell where we had come
from. It was so unexpected. It gave me a feeling of excitement that can’t be
described. Everything in the forest seemed different. The trees were a deeper
shade of green. The birds chirped in a different tone. Vines covered almost every
inch of the ground. One part of me never wanted this moment to end. I felt
completely free from the stress of my life outside of the woods. It was this
moment that I realized that I would much rather stay here for the rest of my life
than go back to society.

I think that another reason that I felt carefree was because my parents didn’t
panic. They took the situation under control and headed for any open area in
hopes to find a map (many of these maps were found throughout the grounds,
telling you where you were). From my point of view, at the time, it seemed as if
they were excited as I was about losing our way. In the end, it only took my
parents ten minutes to find such a map and we were back on the trail in no time.

An experience like this made me think about my place in life. I’m the type who
loves seeking out adventures. When we were lost, I realized that I had everything
I would ever need with me – my family. They’ve always supported me in
everything I do. This experience made me realize that families need to stick
together; you don’t realize how much you need them until, for a moment, you
think they’ll be the last people you see for the rest of your life.

It’s incredible how much a simple thing like being lost in a forest for ten minutes
will affect your outlook on life. Things like not being able to find your way back to
where you came from make you appreciate the little things in life. Looking back
on the day, I realize now that it was fate. Moments like that are few and far
between and should be taken as a lesson. Surprises like this were, and always
will be, an unexpected gift for all.