A gentle breeze rolled through the forest, rustling loose enough leaves to paint the ground in varying shades of red, yellow and orange. One stray leaf happened upon the cheek of Alex Rose, waking him from his mid-afternoon nap. He was the only man that ventured this deep into Century Forest, and it was for that very reason he chose to live here. It was his own little world, free from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. He had everything he needed. He fished a nearby river and laid simple traps for small animals such as squirrels and rabbits, and had a supply of fresh water from a small spring only a few miles from his home. He had the company of the trees and the animals, and of his own mind. He lived as he pleased, having no set of laws except for those of his own making. He was happy, and at peace.

It had been a few months now since Alex left his home. He kept track of the days with sticks he laid out to form letters and numbers. Today was August 14th. By this time, he had started to grow a bit of stubble on his chin and above his lip. He rather liked it. His dirty blonde hair had grown about to his shoulders, and had begun to curl just at the ends. His clothes hung loosely on his ow slender and lean body in taters, ripping here and there where he got snagged on one of his adventures through the forest. Of all his years in school, he had never learned so much as these last few months spent on his own. He learned to fend for himself, he learned what plants were safe to eat, which would make him sick, and ones that would have profound effects like giving him extreme amounts of energy for a short time. Alex had learned how to track animals, how to set traps for the seemingly unpredictable paths the fish would swim through the river. He learned much that they don’t teach in school. However, the more he learned, and the more he adventured, the more curious he became. Every day, he would venture a little further from his little home to look for more interesting things to learn about. Today, however, was a day to relax, not to adventure.

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Alex got up from his resting place, stretched a bit, and began to walk back to his shelter. On the way, he checked his traps, and found two squirrels, a rabbit, and three mice. When he got back, he set a fire, which he learned to do with a couple of good rocks, and placed a pot over the fire full of water. He went inside his little shelter, which he had constructed from some saplings, large tree leaves, and a tarp he brought with him when he left home. It wasn’t much, but it was all he needed. Once he had skinned and gutted the animals, he placed the meat in the pot and boiled them for a meal. A short time later, they were done cooking and he put the meat on a rock he found in the river that was smooth from weathering and that he used as a plate. It was in this fashion, along with some general wandering about, that Alex conducted his life. It was peaceful and pleasurable.