I’m startled by the sight of the full parking lot. But fortunately for us, the mass of people remains in the climbing park and at the fences behind which animals have their home. So we quickly have the entire path to ourselves. And sometimes it feels as if we have the entire forest, even the entire world, just for ourselves.

We move along gravel paths through a mixed forest, whose leaves rustle in the gentle wind like a thousand little bells. The tree crowns are dipped in the colors of autumn, and in some places we walk over a carpet of yellow, red, and brown leaves. I’m surprised by this diverse nature, which I hadn’t expected to find here.

And yet there’s something desolate in it, something gray and cold. Something that doesn’t touch me positively, but washes the deep emptiness to the surface that has always been a part of my inner world. Later I find an explanation for myself. Something that can be true for me. I perceive life here as gray because it lacks contacts and creativity, there’s no room for something special and no space for magical moments.

On the way back we pass one of the enclosures with the animals. Sheep and goats, European bison and donkeys. Families with children feeding the animals. At one spot, a sheep with white fleece stretches its nose through the fence. As it does so, it snuggles against the fence so that I can touch it, and I begin to scratch its back. It closes its eyes and rubs its head against the fence, as if enjoying it very much.

The people around us observe what I’m doing. I don’t pay attention to them, but I hear a woman’s voice say: “Look, she’s letting herself be petted.” I feel comfortable with the animal, and it apparently does with me too. In this moment I must think of the elephants at ENP in Thailand, with whom I felt the same sense of familiarity as here.

As we walk on, it remains standing at the fence and looks in our direction. I’m deeply touched by this brief encounter. For a moment I was allowed to be a friendly companion. In this moment I feel a warm sensation flowing through my entire body. There’s no emptiness in me anymore. There’s a living being for whom I could do something good—even if only for a brief moment.

But every moment counts.