A Crooked Mystery

         The Crooked Forest of Poland.

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         Theories surround this intriguing forest in an almost tangible whirlpool. They writhe and flicker with a call for attention and acceptance. With the rustling leaves they whisper with a rattle, and fall with a gentle thud. Perhapses and maybes float along and stick to the malformed bark with a firmness that refuses to scrub off. Suspicion crawls through the shadows and imaginations come alive with the possibilities. Everyone has an idea or a shrug, whether mundane or exotic, it creeps through the minds of individuals who have stumbled across the phenomenon. 

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         Perhaps, say those who might have a yearning for science fiction, there is a gravitational pull which bowed these trees. Just this one small area, and for a certain amount of time, gravity defied all our known rules. With their eyes alight they exclaim, Just think! What could this mean!? Those less whimsical scoff and call them crazy. After all, we know gravity. It might have actually been… An army of tanks. If the trees were young enough, the tanks could have plowed right over them and created enough trauma that the saplings never recovered! The idea gets shaking heads again though. Maybe, those who are often termed insane say, It was aliens… The crowd disperses before anyone can say ‘flying saucers’. 

         The theories fall short on explaining why only a small area of the forest is affected, for the rest is filled with tall, straight, normal trees. A general consensus has evolved to support one theory, which is, though most plausible, still fascinating in its own way. Perhaps man purposefully altered the growth of the trees. Heads turn as their ears are tugged to listen. After all, they continue, with bowed wood it could be used for shipbuilding and such. The crowds nod their head, while some of the more fanciful turn away with a shake of theirs. Yes perhaps. World War II could have interrupted the farmers from bending the rest of the trees. The war also forced people from their homes, which would account for why the memory of what happened is lost from the near village. How man bent nature however is a curiosity in and of itself.

         Everyone agrees however on at least one thing. Mystery. It is a mystery.

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         Some of the crooked trees unfurl their trunks toward the sky. They look like elephants. Massive and strong. Towering above the ground. If anything led to a comparison between tree trunks and elephant trunks, this would be it in the purest sense. Together, they point north and bugle their war cry with a thump of silent drumming feet. 

         

          These arching trees stand poised to shoot arrows to the north in a daunting uniformity among the wildness. They are a small army surrounded by a rigid, unmoving, one. It is a contrast of bows and staffs. Perhaps they are at war with each other, or maybe they are really fellow soldiers, keeping an eye on their strange brethren.

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Resources:

"What Could Have Caused Poland's Crooked Forest?" IFLScience. 1 July 2014. Web. 17 Oct. 2015. <http://www.iflscience.com/environment/what-could-have-caused-polands-crooked-forest>.

"The Crooked Forest of Gryfino, Poland." The Crooked Forest of Gryfino, Poland. Web. 17 Oct. 2015. <http://www.amusingplanet.com/2013/06/the-crooked-forest-of-gryfino-poland.html>.

Reporter, Daily. "The Crooked Forest: Fantasy Woodland That Could Have Come Straight from a Fairytale." Mail Online. Associated Newspapers. Web. 17 Oct. 2015. <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2047406/The-crooked-forest-Fantasy-woodland-come-straight-fairytale.html>.