Ground

by Noah · 30/01/2026
Published 30/01/2026 13:36

I told the man I was from the place near the bend,

where the county lines blur and the paved roads end.

But the grain elevator is a pile of red brick,

and the air in the valley is no longer as thick.


I remember the July heat, heavy and slow,

when the gravel dust had nowhere to go.

It coated the screen door in a fine, gray grit

that stayed on your fingers if you happened to touch it.


I can’t name the streets without naming the dead,

so I just shook my head at the things that he said.

#death #loss #memory #nostalgia #rural life

13 likes · 8 comments

Comments

Cass Madden · Feb 14, 2026

The part about the dust on the screen door is such a specific memory. I can still feel that grit.

Noah · Feb 15, 2026

It was one of those things that just stuck with me even years later.

Mara K. · Feb 15, 2026

Honestly yeah. It’s the small details like that that make the whole thing feel so heavy.

ritamendes · Feb 15, 2026

the line about the paved roads ending is alright.

sharpmove · Feb 16, 2026

the ending really got to me. naming the streets and the dead is a heavy way to think about home.

softdamage · Feb 16, 2026

The grain elevator part was an okay image.

Noah · Feb 16, 2026

Fair enough, they’re pretty much everywhere out there.

softdamage · Feb 16, 2026

True, they all kind of look the same after a while.

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