I, better known as Jaq, was bored. Everything's meaning was lost in the swirling torrent of everyday life. I felt nothing more than the want to take walk in the woods.

It was a brilliant fall day. The trees were leafless and the ground was unusually free of the tiny annoyances. Ground dirt and dead grass were all that remained in the forest.

I walked all morning, and it was mid-afternoon before I started realizing where I was. A circle of trees caught my eyes in the distance. It looked to be about seven giant specimens, but I could catch glimpses of color in the ring. I made towards them.

I was right. There were seven trees, each with a different holiday-type symbol painted on them. Fireworks, a shamrock, a turkey, a Christmas Tree, an Easter egg, a heart, and a Jack-O-Lantern, the latest catching my attention. I was intrigued with the artisanship. They were beautifully painted to perfectly resemble their Holidays. I reached towards the carved pumpkin…

Suddenly, the nose turned! What I thought to be merely a triangle of paint was really some sort of knob! Then, the entire picture swung outward, revealing nothing more than the hollow shell of the giant tree it was "painted" on!

Well, to say I wasn't startled would be a lie. But I had believed in so-called
"Other Worlds", which would pop up whenever you weren't looking and you'd fall right in without you ever knowing it. This seemed the perfect opportunity to explore. After all, what was left for me in this plane of reality?

My answer to myself was prompt.

Nothing.

I peeked in. Looking up, then down, I saw naught in either direction but blackness. The void blended with the dark and went on into eternity.

Just jump in…It'll be worth it…

I jumped.