My neighbor was leaving for vacation and said, "Hey, hold down the fort while I'm gone."
I did not know this was a figure of speech.
I am a samurai.
A fort is a fort.
I made a perimeter map.
I checked the fence line twice a day, at dawn and at dusk.
I memorized the delivery truck's schedule.
I identified the enemy. It was a raccoon.
We engaged three times. I will not say who won.
On the fourth night, a storm came.
A fort is weakest in a storm.
So I stood watch on his porch from 9 PM to 2 AM, in the rain.
His security camera saw me.
His wife, who had not left yet, called my phone. "What are you doing?"
"Holding down the fort," I said.
There was a long silence.
"Do you... want a flashlight?"
She brought me a flashlight and a thermos of coffee.
She did not laugh.
She said, "The fort thanks you."
When my neighbor came home, I handed him a full report.
Fence secure. Deliveries normal. Raccoon situation ongoing.
He read the whole report standing in his driveway.
Then he straightened his back, looked me in the eye, and said:
"Well held, soldier."
Now, whenever anyone on our street goes on vacation, they come to me first.
They say the words formally, like a transfer of command.
"The fort is yours."
I accept.
I have held down eleven forts.
Last week, I found a badge in my mailbox.
The neighborhood had made it for me.
It says FORT COMMANDER.
I did not ask for this rank.
I will not give it back.
I wear it on patrol.
We joke about winning the life lottery, because we were born in the USA, but it’s not far from the truth.
These visitors here for the World Cup are getting to experience what we often take for granted.
I live in Alabama. I can start in Mobile and drive north for 5 hours, and still be in Alabama.
My state has beautiful sandy beaches, and also has the foothills of the Appalachians. In between, we have a super speedway that pushes the limits of American muscle. Talladega.
NASA is here. The Army’s rotary wing flight school is here.
We have a festival every year to celebrate peanuts. We celebrate the harvest of a crop with funnel cakes and music.
2 teams from my state are currently in the College World Series, and that isn’t even our most popular sport.
Don’t even get me started on football Saturdays in the fall. It’s something else entirely.
My state is just 1 of 50 states that are all equally wonderful.
This country is awesome, and I do love it so. 🇺🇸
Apple has landed the rights to turn ‘MISTBORN’ into a film franchise & ‘THE STORMLIGHT ARCHIVE’ into a TV series.
Brandon Sanderson will write, produce and consult on all projects.
(Source: https://t.co/Ka6RvxmT3S)