A Most Beautiful World

Sonja Lea Ms. Hunt AP Language Composition P.1 15 September 2010 A Most Beautiful World Once in a great while a person may have the chance to experience beauty so great that it seems to be of another world. There is such a place, a large clearing within a dense green forest. The edges of the clearing are shady and cool, but within the open field, the sun shines brightly, creating warmth. The open center of the clearing offers a view of a clear view sky, dotted with light, smooth, soft clouds. It’s quiet. Only the birds and insects disturb the silence. Lush grass over a cushion of soft earth provides open seating for a grasshopper symphony. When not so near to the ground, clean air is fresh and cool with the scent of pine. To one side of the clearing, the earth is pressed down and filled with water of a clear, glass-like lake. With a single touch, a leaf sends ripples throughout. At its center, an ageless weeping willow sits with is roots extended, making itself into an island. So high is the willow, that its top branches would not be visible if one were to stand beneath it, for it rises above all other trees in the forest. The old willow’s vines reach the water, creating a curtain of vines around it. A canoe waits on the shore opposite the tree, and a visitor could glide across the water to the willow tree, and open the curtain of vines to see the massive willow’s trunk. Its body, as big as a wall, could never be hugged by human arms, but on the northern side, a broad branch grows low enough for climbing. If a child were to grasp the branch, he could pull himself up into the rough, thick tree, full of age, strong and stern as a grandpa. A child could climb higher and higher, as the vines grow thinner and thinner. Climbing beyond the vines and into the sunlight, brighter and brighter, he would see the view above every other tree, all the forest laid out, as well as the small field of grass, and the lake, with its crystal reflection of the willow against the sky. The