+ LINCOLN COUNTY, TENNESSEE
BY JOSH SORRELLS
It stretches out like an ocean, the hills rolling like waves, the clouds like the sea’s foam. From up here, in my crow’s nest, I can see the miles disappear on the horizon. I can see the houses, like tiny ships in the distance, sailing across the Tennessean Sea. The Warren’s house, the Cobb’s barn, the Lambert’s cottage. There is smoke rising from their chimneys like smoke from a cannon. Captain! There is a storm in the distance. It brings ice! It brings death! Captain, oh Captain! Our colorful sails, they stand no chance against the storm! Captain! What will we do? It’s upon us! The sun is setting, our lights have gone out. Autumn wakes up to winter, the hills rolling like waves, their trees naked and cold. From up here, in my crow’s nest, I can see the first frost glistening in the morning’s light. I can see the land shiver in the cold. My Captain’s sails, ripped apart and scattered, coloring the hills, no longer catching the wind. The smell of smoke fills the air, the colors dull down. My heart slows down and as I stare out at what surrounds me I see the houses below me, their fires inside beckoning me to climb down from this crow’s nest.
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