by Casem AbuLughod

Casey wrote this essay in the “Summer Fun & Games” workshop I led at Pinney Library last summer. In it he captured just how I feel about “pine time.”

They walked through the woods, watching their steps on uneven ground. Roots and rocks ready to make one unsteady. Holding hands when the path was wide enough. Looking up through branches to a bright blue sky, the occasional cloud peeking past the leaves filtering the sunlight into cooler air. Rounding a bend, the two find themselves walking on the soft ground created by orange needles. She looks expectantly at him, a small smirk quirking her lips. 

“Do you know what time it is?”

“Pine time.”

They laugh lightly at the familiar wordplay that has entertained them as a couple for years. Standing beneath the sappy spires, they enjoy the sappiness of their own little laughs together as they’ve made a life. Feeling a breeze waft through, carrying the sharp fresh scent of the needles. A sharp word for something so soft to stand upon. 

A memory of campfire and sitting with close humans sharing stories as the light crackles around faces in the darkness, the warmth of the fire, and the friendships, floats through his mind like the ash that puzzled small children who’d never been outside. 

Memory gives way to the present like a scent is overwhelmed by another. Focus shifts and it’s time to continue moving along the trail. Pine time is at an end until the next copse is approached. 

Moving through the forest, more trees are admired and creatures are looked for and occasionally spotted. Here we find them, two humans, creatures of the woods as well, at least briefly. Making their way through makes them part of the space for this time and this space starts to become part of them. Locking in their memories of each other and who they are in the other’s perception of themselves. 

Where do they go in their minds when needing a respite? Do they find pine time on their own or is it only within the reality of the space that we can truly escape? Does the memory act as a safe harbor or add to the misery we try to escape by showing how happiness was once possible? Do we forget the frustrations and pains that led us there?

Maybe it’s time for another walk through the pines. 

©2024 Casem AbuLughod

Casem is a Madison, WI-based performer, stay at home father, and occasional putter of words together. He can be found at www.rhymeswithawesome.com