The Woodpecker Oliver was like most modern teenagers. He was always busy with school and spent his free time playing computer games. Going for walks seemed boring to him. One day, after intense battles in the virtual world, he heard a strange sound: “Knock, knock!” It sounded as if someone was tapping on wood. He thought he was imagining it, but the next morning, the sound was still there. Oliver went from house to house, trying to find its source. Nobody was chopping wood, and nobody had heard anything. Days passed, and the noise drove him mad. Finally, he realised the sound was coming from the forest. He ran along a path and reached a clearing. There, a woodpecker was tapping its sharp beak against a tree. “I’ve found you!” Oliver shouted, throwing stones at the bird to scare it away. But nothing worked. “I’ll bring a gun tomorrow and kill you!” he roared angrily. That night, Oliver went to bed, dreaming of escaping the annoying noise. He had a strange dream. His little house flew into the sky and landed at the edge of the forest. Oliver saw the woodpecker through the window and pointed his father’s gun at it. “No!” cried a tiny voice. “If you kill him, you’ll destroy the whole forest!” A little hare was hiding behind a tree. “Listen! That’s the sound of the forest’s heartbeat,” the hare explained. “Knock, knock!” Oliver listened carefully. Suddenly, he understood that this sound was the very essence of life. In time with its rhythm, buds burst open in spring, flowers filled the air with their fragrance, birds performed their mating dances, bees buzzed around their hives, and a mother bear emerged from her den with her cubs. Then Oliver realised something even more important: his own heart was beating to the same rhythm — knock, knock, knock, knock. He was part of nature, connected to every living thing. At that moment, Oliver woke up. Dawn was breaking. The woodpecker’s tapping no longer echoed in his head. Instead, he heard his own heart beating faster — knock, knock, knock, knock — and understood that his old life was behind him.