After I wrote about our visit to the forest in San Francisco a few weeks ago, we went there again with our friend and his son Daniel, who recently turned eight. Our dog Max enjoyed the outing again, since he could run leash free. On the way back at about five, the setting sun lit the leaf, and before taking a photo of it, I pointed out the effect of the light to Daniel. He was silent for a while, and then suddenly asked, “Do plants think?” I paused before answering. “Why do people think?” I asked. “To make a choice”, he answered. “Do plants need to make a choice? Do they choose where to grow, where to get food, water, light?” I challenged him. He thought for a moment again and then said, “They probably think differently than us.”

There is another book written by Daniel Chamovitz titled, “What a Plant Knows: A Field Guide to the Senses”. Online I found the book’s summary – “Paralleling the human senses, the author explains the secret lives of various plants, from the colors they see to whether or not they really like classical music to their ability to sense nearby danger.”

Turns out that Daniel at his young age knew something that scientists and writers have been trying to prove – that there are so many things beyond our knowledge and comprehension.