Personal Reflection: Gerald wrote these thoughts on relocation as an unnamed narrator in the aftermath of catastrophe in a near future setting.
What if we have another disaster like the Gulf oil spew in 2010? And what if the U.S. were broken into designated areas? Could forced relocation be implemented?
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Which area are you from? I’m from #3. I hope I will never have to move. So much of my life is bound up in this place. But if I am moved to another area, part of me will always be in Area #3.
Every area has its own accents and idioms, I suppose, but our Area is kind of special. Some say we have traces of the old country in our speech. The USA it was called.
#5 could be okay, I suppose. Smaller camps with a more personal touch. A bunch of us could be going there soon to help with the big toxic spill. Might be a good deal. Toxic workers get double food allotments and private quarters. Guess so they don’t contaminate the food and housing people?
If I am assigned there I hope to do some good. Try to prevent the contamination of the migratory birds that nest there. Lucky birds. Imagine going where you want. No travel permits. No border guards!
But we may be too late. You can’t ever get it out of the ground water. We’ll end up drinking it and eating it. Everybody’s got to die sometime, so I’m pretty much resigned to whatever happens. But I would like to be buried in Area #3. It’s the only home I’ve ever known.
