Soybeans, God, and Horseshit
Small towns always have a distinct smell. You won’t notice it at first. No one really does. There’s always too much shit in the air. Horses, cows, pigs, chickens. Good old boys and god. Drivers will wave you on at stop signs, regardless of the fact that it’s their turn. Downtown will be historic, but all the buildings will be crumbling, and no one will be able to afford the restoration. The people will be friendly, tired, and stupid. And the smell will never leave.
When you’re eight years old, you will find a cat and ask your parents if you can keep him. He’ll be fixed, so they’ll say that it’s okay. You will do your best, but eventually the coyotes will get him. You won’t know about it, tell yourself that he ran off to live with another family. But the howls, their sordid laughing squeals, will haunt you every night when you turn off the light, and you will learn to sleep on the floor by your parents’ bed. They sleep with the windows open and the sound will be louder, but you will feel safer. …show more content…
You’ll learn to love the farmers. Your car will be covered with dirt from the roads or pale yellow dust from the harvest in early October. You never wash it in September. You will always know the season. Soybeans or corn. You will learn that Democrat and Socialist are synonymous and are interchangeable with Communist or Fascist. You will learn the definitions of Democrat and Socialist, the definitions of Communist and Fascist. You will laugh. The children will teach you how to swear, but their parents will teach you how to slur. Leaning in close, they will whisper it in your ear, the stench of meat heavy on their breath. And the smell will never
Small towns always have a distinct smell. You won’t notice it at first. No one really does. There’s always too much shit in the air. Horses, cows, pigs, chickens. Good old boys and god. Drivers will wave you on at stop signs, regardless of the fact that it’s their turn. Downtown will be historic, but all the buildings will be crumbling, and no one will be able to afford the restoration. The people will be friendly, tired, and stupid. And the smell will never leave.
When you’re eight years old, you will find a cat and ask your parents if you can keep him. He’ll be fixed, so they’ll say that it’s okay. You will do your best, but eventually the coyotes will get him. You won’t know about it, tell yourself that he ran off to live with another family. But the howls, their sordid laughing squeals, will haunt you every night when you turn off the light, and you will learn to sleep on the floor by your parents’ bed. They sleep with the windows open and the sound will be louder, but you will feel safer. …show more content…
You’ll learn to love the farmers. Your car will be covered with dirt from the roads or pale yellow dust from the harvest in early October. You never wash it in September. You will always know the season. Soybeans or corn. You will learn that Democrat and Socialist are synonymous and are interchangeable with Communist or Fascist. You will learn the definitions of Democrat and Socialist, the definitions of Communist and Fascist. You will laugh. The children will teach you how to swear, but their parents will teach you how to slur. Leaning in close, they will whisper it in your ear, the stench of meat heavy on their breath. And the smell will never