Having lived alongside the Simcoe County Forest for the past 40-plus years, we have had the privilege of watching the forest transform from a purely red pine forest to one with a mixture of tall, straight pine trees and a healthy young deciduous undergrowth.

Years ago, our children and their cousins ran freely through this forest. Their pathes uninterrupted by saplings and undergrowth. Their steps treading lightly upon the thick blanket of pine needles that covered the forest floor.

The pine trees have been in the minority for, at least, the last decade. This week, their numbers have decreased again.

This spring, as the sun shines through the newly formed openings, a new canvas will be created.

Saplings, once struggling to reach the sky, will now bathe in warmth and sunshine.

Leaves unfurling, trunks stretching, and canopies exploding, sheltering the mosses, grasses, fungi, and flowers that now cover the forest floor.

A new canvas is about to be painted.