[From a protective mother to a trustworthy mother]

- When parent-child relationships evolve together with the forest -

My daughter's independence is not a "loss"The process of parent-child relationships evolving to the next stage
From protecting to trusting and letting go.
This is also a major lesson that the forest has taught me.

---

1. What a year has taught me

In the spring of 2025,
My daughter Mayu left Yakushima to start junior high school and began living in a dormitory in Kagoshima.

For 12 years, it was natural that he was by my side every day.
It wasn't until it was gone that I realized how big it was.

• Even if I work, I can't fill it
• Even if I sleep, it won't be filled
• It cannot be filled by any of our daily activities.

It felt like a tight squeeze was being felt deep inside my chest.

At the time, I thought of it as a loss.
But now I understand.

That is, A sign of a change in relationshipsThat's how it was.

---

2. What the forest taught me: Letting go

In the forest, we look up at the trees.
But at the same time, the trees are also quietly watching us.

Trees do not keep seeds in their branches forever.
When it is ripe, it will naturally let go.

Letting go is not losing.
To trust.

Maybe the parents are the same.

• From the one who protects
• To be a trusted presence

It's not the coldness,
A deeper form of love.

---

3. What I felt on the weekend when we met again after a long time

The other day, Mayu came to support her younger brother who was in Ibusuki on a soccer trip.

In a short time, I
Not "something to protect"
A person who chooses their own futureI was looking at it as...

she said.

"I can continue studying because I'm imagining my future."

Each and every one of us has a reason for being born.
There's no need to compare.
There is a life that only you can live.

When I looked back at the ticket gate at Kagoshima station, my eyes were a little red.
It's not a weakness,Proof of connection.

---

4. Parents will also become independent.

When children become independent,
In fact, parents are also encouraged to become independent.

I am now
From a "protective mother" to a "trusted mother."

With my daughter becoming independent,
I too am standing up as a person.

And someday――
I hope that the day will come when I can set foot on African soil again with Mayu.
I'm sure somewhere.

---

Living with the forest

Living with the forest
To overlap one's life with the cycle of nature.

• There was an encounter
• There is a separation
• There is letting go
• There is regeneration

Deep within loneliness there is always pride.

To know this with your body,
I think it's a gift from the forest.

This realization came to me during my time in the forests of Yakushima.
He has asked me this question many times.

---

Kaleido Forest is
In the transition of life
Shifting from "protection" to "trust"
We want this to be a place where we can embrace that quiet time together.

The forest is
Always our transformation,
I watch in silence.

*Kaleido Forest programs are guided by ANFT (Association of Nature and Forest Therapy) internationally certified forest therapy guides.
I cherish the time I spend in the forests of Yakushima, opening my five senses and returning to myself.

▶For more information about Deep Forest Bathing®, click here

▶Book online

▶Forest Journal: Click here for other articles