There was no chance to wait for nicer weather, this Monday morning was the only time, in the coming two weeks or more, I could visit the trees in Helsinki because of travel. So nothing to do but to go out and hope that the camera would survive the drizzle. I put my phone in one of the pockets of the bag and the keys in the other, and realized only half way down the stairs that I needed my purse, too, if I wanted to take the boat to Harakka Island to water the plants in my studio before the trip. I began with the alder, and then continued up to the elm on the hill. The foliage of the elm provided some protection for the rain, but the drops were becoming bigger and the drizzle turned to rain. The camera was collaborative, however, no problem, so I finished both images and walked down to the pier to wait for the boat. Only one the way did I look for my phone, and realized to my horror that the pocket of the bag was empty, and so was the other one, no phone, no keys! Should I turn back and search for them by the trees; they had probably fallen out without my noticing, that is, not get off on the island, but take the ride back? And what if I did not find my phone, could I travel to Sao Paulo in the afternoon without a phone? Or should I take the chance that I could find somebody to let me in to the building on the island? Yes, I would try. So I jumped off and let the boat continue to Särkkä without me. I expected the exhibition in the old telegraph building to be open, but the doors was closed. Through the window I saw Virpi and went in to ask her for the keys to the house. And at that very moment I put down my bag, and realized it had pockets on both sides. There they were, the phone and the keys. I laughed and excused myself with my age and went up to water the plants as planned.

On the way back I thought about this pseudo-drama and the way everyday life is full of such incidents. The real drama, however, might be taking place in silence before my very eyes. The elm is suffering of an attack by some strange fungi or perhaps insects, something that destroys its leaves…