Wu writes about creating the forest in his poem "Staring at Death," from the collection Meditations from Latter Years: "Thinking of what I can leave behind / Or, what I shouldn't leave behind." He hopes that he can leave future generations a pure and peaceful spot.
對於造林一事，吳晟以 2005 年最新發表的《晚年冥想》詩組的〈凝視死亡〉一詩中所寫：「尋思可以留下些什麼／或者，不該留下些什麼」，表達自己為後代子孫留下一片潔淨安樂土的心意。