Max Chapman

"Don't Go Into the Woods"

‘Don’t go into the woods.’ That was something my mother always said, offering no explanation except for the promise of closure when I ‘got older’. I’d followed her words diligently, never venturing past the run-down picket fence with the chipping white paint. Instead, I stayed within the confines of my backyard, kicking stones, picking daisies, and making mud pies, like any other nine-year-old.