Aokigahara – Sea of Trees
“Life is complicated. It’s filled with nuance. It’s unsatisfying… If I believe in anything, it is doubt. The root cause of all life’s problems is looking for a simple fucking answer.” Anthony Bourdain
Beautiful dense at the base of Mt. Fuji –
Signs at path beginning warn
to stay on path lest you be lost.
In the beauty is a huge yuck factor:
Don’t follow the tapes –
Youmayfindabody.
It is the #1 place in Japan
to contemplate/commit
…suicide
WE CAN ALL HELP PREVENT SUICIDE. The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals.
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kanzen sakura 
Oct 08, 2018 @ 16:57:24
Oh, my. This is breathtakingly beautiful, and breathtakingly sad. So well done, Toni.
Oct 08, 2018 @ 16:58:14
In the last two years I have lost three friends to suicide. It is hard to deal with. Sorry I couldn’t be jocular for you today.
Oct 08, 2018 @ 17:48:32
Beautiful, but so sad. Sending you love and light Toni.
Oct 08, 2018 @ 17:55:36
Oh my. Unexpected. Sad.
Oct 08, 2018 @ 17:59:47
A sobering offering amidst all the humor. Suicide is such a sad fact, and so traumatic for those left behind.
Oct 08, 2018 @ 18:02:00
Yes and there is a movie called “The Forest” that discusses the legendary Aokigahara forest. I am so sorry for your loss, Toni 😥
Oct 08, 2018 @ 18:06:49
Unusual description of Mt Fuji and beautiful photo to go with it.
Oct 08, 2018 @ 18:21:38
Most people just hink of Fuji as being out in the open, never thinking of the lush and beautiful forest that frew up in the lava flows of long ago.
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Oct 08, 2018 @ 18:44:42
Must rain a lot at the base of Mt. Fuji; the real forest is certainly haunting. So much levity out here, I enjoyed your darkness.
Oct 08, 2018 @ 20:23:24
Toni, so hard to lose three friends this way. I am so sorry. I lost a friend to suicide. It was very painful. I imagine, in that forest, that one must feel the presence of spirits.
Oct 09, 2018 @ 10:07:37
The Japanese are “spirit” driven. Hungry Ghosts from suicide and murders abound in their universe
Oct 08, 2018 @ 21:08:02
I’m sorry your inspiration was caused by such terrible losses. Mt. Fuji is so beautiful from a distance, perhaps deceptively so
Oct 09, 2018 @ 10:05:59
It truly is beautiful. Climbing to the top is quite an experience. I have done it twice and an always amazed. It is similar to Mount St. Helena in its beauty and the forest at its base.
Oct 08, 2018 @ 21:35:25
Fantastic closing lines. I love the line with no spaces. Very effective.
Oct 08, 2018 @ 21:55:28
Wow! Scary Yuck!
Oct 09, 2018 @ 10:02:13
And very sad
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Oct 08, 2018 @ 22:37:25
I admire your take on the prompt, bringing the horrible reality of suicide to light. I had no idea about the dark side of Mount Fuji ….and Anthony Bourdain’s insight still did not save him from his own demise. It is all so sad. Again, I am so sorry for the loss of your friends. ((hugs))
Oct 09, 2018 @ 10:01:54
Thank you Mish. Oddly, it is the first thing I thought of when I saw the word yuck
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Oct 09, 2018 @ 02:36:27
When I think of Mount Fuji it’s always as a painting or a postcard picture. I had no idea it had dense forest at its base or that people commit suicide there. How tragic. I’m so sorry for the loss of your friends, Toni.
Oct 09, 2018 @ 10:00:21
This is how most people think of it. The forest growing in that super rich soil is truly beautiful much like the forest that grows at the base of Mt. St. Helena. Japan has a history of suicide. About 25% of its suicides happen here. The forest is littered with their belongings. The trees are so green as to be almost black. Very very dense. It is a beautiful and haunted place. There is a movie called The Forest but it is exploitational crap.
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Oct 09, 2018 @ 14:44:42
I had read about that forest… maybe suicide is contagious.. it could be a forest or the suffering of young Werther… alas there are so many who dies everywhere.
Oct 09, 2018 @ 16:37:04
Oh, how sublimely you put it — there is death in this beauty, all those lives lost in despair and depression against this background.
I am so sorry for your loss, Toni.
Oct 09, 2018 @ 19:18:52
Heartbreakingly evocative and beautiful, Toni!
Oct 09, 2018 @ 23:23:25
Wow, Toni. Breathtakingly sad. That lush and scary landscape lends to the atmosphere of suicide. Just that ;photo. This poem goes deep.
Oct 10, 2018 @ 08:29:19
I’ve heard of this place. So beautiful and strange. Hey, I thought of you recently while watching CSI:NY. The murder weapon was a katana. There was other Japanese stuff in it, too. You’d have loved it.
Oct 10, 2018 @ 11:38:37
Suicide the unanswerable question, we are left in the dark. Was there something we could have done, or is it just another way to say, goodby? “Death” is faithful, dressed in black and always comes at the end of life, be it accident, sickness or suicide. So sorry for the loss of your friends….perhaps it is all a part of destiny?
Oct 11, 2018 @ 14:03:38
A sad situation indeed, but beautifully spoken Toni!
Oct 12, 2018 @ 11:16:31
Bewitching place…sad…so beautifully told!!