Accustomed as we are to the reality of it, we're always bemused by the fact that few of our neighbours on the street where our home is located acknowledge the presence of a forested ravine behind them, in close proximity to their houses. Oh, they're aware enough of its presence, and when the houses were built 30 years ago, people were anxious to buy the homes that backed on the ravine. It was prestigious. And the lots were more costly. The backdrop of trees is attractive to most people. It means there are no neighbours behind them.

Aesthetically that can be a great plus. Backing onto the ravine also translates to the image in one's mind that one's property is somehow extended. And people do take advantage of that, treating contiguous areas quite beyond their legal property line as though they are part of their private ownership, extending their gardens into it, even building garden sheds there, and considering it a bonus. Which it is, though it is illegal and occasionally the municipality will so advise property-owners.

What we find puzzling is that people who regard their close proximity to the forest as a plus, don't go a little further to make the least effort to improve the quality of their lives by recognizing they can appreciate the forest itself by engaging with it. None of them seem to feel the urge to reach out into the forest by walking along any of its inviting trails, seeing it at close range, beautiful in its seasonal landscapes and inviting for vigorous yet leisurely walks.

Both families on either side of us obviously don't feel they've missed anything never having ventured into the ravine, and they're typical of the greater balance of those living on the street. I'd venture to say that a mere five percent of the residents have ever exerted themselves to walk through the ravine, to familiarize themselves with the extended forested area with its wide array of tree species and wildflowers, birds and animals, resident and passing-through that make the ravine such a fascinating place, so rewarding to even briefly, let alone habitually explore.