The sun sat warm and high above the clearing, gently filtered by the lacework canopy of tall trees. The air was crisp and quiet, broken only by the low hum of distant insects and the occasional bird chirping as if offering commentary from a hidden perch. A large open area near the edge of the woods had been prepared, crates and wooden planks scattered across the grass in messy, hopeful stacks. Rope coils lay waiting, like questions begging to be unraveled.

Participants trickled in from ...