With the strife of life in our rearview mirror
Sights set for paradise
We venture through a land that seems forgotten
Cast in the shadow of progress
Left behind to play catch-up
Yet teeming with life
Vibrant sunshine nurturing the sprawling landscape
Pines break the orange clay
Spanish moss hangs from the oak trees
The closer we get to the beach, the more frequently the palm trees start showing up
Steam rises off asphalt that was kissed by a summer shower
The big blue sky down here
It just looks bigger and bluer than anywhere else
But, I can’t help but notice the empty buildings
The paint chipping from the exterior
Weathered signs hanging out front
The trailers caving in on themselves
Homes and cars alike sitting on blocks
Docks crumbling into ponds in backyards
Rust spreading across awnings
The physical embodiment of abandon
It feels like a place lost in time
Churches with cracks in the foundation
Roadside attractions deserted
Once charming stops en route to the beach now dilapidated
Stores overgrown with weeds
Vines sprawling like a life force that cannot be contained
Where do you even go to get a decent cocktail down here?
It’s slower, sure, but there’s more to this land than that
Part of it feels painful, as if the Earth itself is sore
It’s hard not to think about its history
Oppression
And an entire population the cities dismissed
Part of it feels burned, as if the only thing that can exist here is the primordial will to live
Lonely
All the crosses signal belief
And if you stop to talk to people, hell,
Some make it sound like belief is all they got
It makes it hard to understand how Southern people can still be so nice
But it damn sure makes it easy to understand why they’re so tough.