Shel Graves' Sensorium

Palm trees wave on Cheated, a circular island of blue water in the middle of a vast desert.  “There is no nourishment,” Miss Emeline says. “And little water to go around.” Camels drink, until the water evaporates, and then nibble on palm leaves. They spit at newcomers. Inhabitants pitch tents in the barren desert Contempt where sandstorms bray. Sand roughens everything. It coats the surface of the Cheated oasis. It scours the faces of anyone who goes uncovered. The reptilian inhabitants have dry, cold, scaly skin and spend their days soaking in the hot sun of Contempt.

The flat sea Fear surrounds a chain of rock islands. The rising tide hides them. The low tide exposes them. Sea monsters rise from dark rippling surfaces. They raise claws with serrated edges. Schools of Fearians swim in icy waters. Visitors arrive by boat. “All welcome!” bellows the sea monster. The jagged rock Terror juts out of the dark, thick, sea. Tiny birds with sharp beaks and eyes perch on the pinnacle and make shrill cries. Visitors come to Terror and cling to the sharp and slippery rocks. They can see so much of the wide, terrifyingly beautiful, sea. Clouds gather above. "There is no civilization," says the Guide. "No huts or creature comforts." Still Fear and Terror remain popular destinations. And many creatures live here in the porous crevasses of the dark rock. Fear waves crash into Terror and the dark sea and spurts geysers. The clouds gather low and dark above. Soon thunder bursts and lightening crackles. In the storms, lone ships smash ...

Fog fills the low hills of Tense. Moisture drips from the scrub trees. The scent of evergreen and juniper rises. Scrawny animals bare teeth at unwanted visitors. The city Unsure slumps on a mountain slope. Buildings slide off in heavy rainfall. Mud slurries down into the great river Tense. The inhabitants are known for innovative tendencies — they try. Young architects and artisans live here. Tense sends forth many adventurers and explorers from its Expedition Club. Many Tense exports look good, but fail quickly. Tense buildings are structurally unsound and slide off into the sea. "We try, we fail," says the Guide, Ele Chim Saves. "Occasionally there are brilliant successes." The successful youth of Tense, leave the city but return in their elder years to care for the land. "Tense has no mayors, guards, or hard fast rules," says Ele Chim. "We have often been unsure, but never over-managed."

Visitors dive into the ice pools Invigorating. Waterfalls crash elevating green water. Cast off backpacks and boots lay scattered in the sand. The paths up Invigorating Falls are well-traveled. Sips from the pools of Invigorating provide sustenance. Steam rises from the hot springs. Bears roam. “If you see a trio of white, brown, and black Invigorating bears that means good fortune,” says the Guide. Miss Emeline erects her easel and paints a picture of three such bears beside an Invigorating pool. The bears, nearby, huff and roll in the snowflower fields. The cliffside city Admiration stretches atop the admiration cliffs and overlooks all of Invigorating. "Admiration takes anything and anyone of beauty and skill and holds it up," says the Guide. The city, a variety of architecture, displays statues, paintings, and tapestry. In the cafes and libraries towering cakes, stacks of cookies, and arrays of tarts are offered to guests in homage to friends. Singers stand ...

The rocky hills of Aching slide. Travelers trip over fields of slate and boulders. Streams crash down rubble cliffs. Glacier water runs grey-white and frigid. Hikers carry backpacks filled with rocks. Workers raise pickaxes and let them fall, striking rocks, tunneling through mountains. The denizens dwell in caves. Stone pillars point up and down. Travelers descend between them into caves and peer through the darkness fascinated by the cold-wet against their skin and the emptiness before them. “I think I saw the rocks glow,” says Miss Doe Friend. Miss Emeline Traveler takes off her shoes and dumps out pebbles. She rubs her skin where it scraped against rock. “I’m so thirsty,” a passerby says. “It was a long walk up and down the shale switchbacks. I tripped and fell many times.” “Did you find what you were looking for?” asks Emeline. “No, not at all,” they reply. “Nothing but sore feet and bruises.” The Castle Discomfort sits atop a rubble hill. "It is not far, b...

A long slow muddy river slides through Boredom under an emerald slope into a cavern. “This is a place I have seldom seen,” says Miss Emeline Traveler. Tiny daisies raise their heads from the green banks. Birds stalk fish and frogs in the grey-brown water. Gators walk the banks. Hippos lurk, submerged and somnolent. “I thought to do something, but probably won’t,” mutters Miss Doe Friend. Immortal catfish wave their whiskers.  “Careful, of the slippery slopes,” the Guide warns as he ferries travelers downriver, poles to the muddy banks, and watches them disembark to huts and bowls of soggy rice. In the nearby bustling port of Distraction, vendors from across Emotion sell crafts and vegetables. They journey to Distraction via underground rivers or come by sea. Visitors get lost in the maze-like alleys. "Distraction makes nothing, but provides the space for this open market," says the Guide. "It reminds me of the internet," muses Miss Doe Friend. ...

“Did I express myself correctly in words? I have never climbed the Confidence mountain,” said Miss Emeline  Traveler. Confidence boasts the highest peak, a clear cap of snow in the sky. “It is the most beautiful mountain I have encountered,” she says. “It is the one I have looked on the most.” Everyone can see Mount Confidence from everywhere. Smaller, but equally beautiful hills, are tucked behind it. Mount Confidence obscures all else from view. It shines so bright. The sun plays across its slopes casting gold beacons over the land. The ice slicks melt. “No one will ever think you know anything if you aren’t confident of it yourself. You have to be confident,” says the Guide.  In the foreground, Mount Confidence. Evergreens grow in the slopes. Red squirrels fill the forests with chatter. Purple asters blossom in the meadows. The pool below the mountain reflects the shining peak. A wide walking trail runs around it and spirals up the slopes. On the slope bef...

Taste: sourness; of coffee, of wine, of waking Sound: crows cawing a loud party or a disagreement; new music; nostalgic music Smell: pancakes Sight: cherry blossoms; Sam sneaking behind a plant; glossy black Touch:  moving crackling joints Extra: We are sometimes, but not always, thinking metaphorically. Grateful for: singing, poetry

Purple hills and an orange sun rise over the red flowered fields of ecstasy. Crystal blue streams with emerald waves flow. Jade oceans lap pink shores. Visitors arrive by air.  The land ripples into view. “I am already sad to leave it,” says Miss Emeline Traveler, knowing her stay will be too short. Ecstasy issues temporary visas. The land remains pristine, far above and away. "A gorgeous day. A wonderful week," says Miss Doe Friend. The rabbits of Ecstasy bound and play and hop away. "The fruits of Ecstasy are incomparable: purple pomegranates, black apples, and champagne grapes, but they do not survive transport and can only be tasted there," says Miss Doe Friend. Shimmering soft vines wrap the land in smooth and inviting love. Wild berries grow deep in the forest. Anyone may climb the highest point of Ecstasy, a small hill which affords a view of the entire land from stream to sea. It can be traversed in a day. In the city Interest, inhabitants m...

The Kind meadow blossoms with bright wildflowers and stunning green leaves which frame their faces. Gentle slopes run along the easy river. “Kind welcomes all,” says the Guide. The seeds of Kind float in the warm wind away from it. They land, plant, grow, blossom, and reseed. Berries of all colors, shapes, and sizes grow in the fertile loam alongside the winding Kind streams.  Sunlight plays through the waters. Golden rocks shimmer like coins underwater. They reflect yellow-green, yellow-pink, yellow-orange ripples over the riverbed stones. Little fishes, silver with yellow stripes, dart. They nibble the thin layer of algae upon the Kind stones. "In the village Harmonious, you will be welcomed and assigned a Kind companion to show you around," says the Guide. "They will take you to see the Kind flowers and teach you to harvest seeds. You may take some packets home with you." Flowers grow in the gardens and window boxes of Harmonious. "We ate salads...

The sandy soil of Exhausted puckers along a fence line topped with concertina wire. Guards watch the border indolently, but there are holes in the fence no one has bothered to repair. Despite stern fencing, little within lures newcomers to explore the other side. “Although, there must be something there or why bother?” some ask. A harsh sun beats the Exhausted desert into submission. The desert spirals. Cacti bristle in the heat. They horde water. Thieving beetles stab at their stems to steal some. Birds nest in the sand fluttering dusty wings and playing dead as a mode of survival. Parched ghosts moan in the barren town. “No words worth writing,” they cry. A trespasser feels a flat ache as they walk along the fence looking for a hole in the slatted boards. Finding one, they peer in at the ghost town Parched. Ghosts float above the slatted floorboards and wooden walkways over the dry, cracked land. "Water, water!" they cry and search. "There is little wa...

On hillsides of flowing grasses, visitors come to watch the glorious Smug sunrises and sunsets although often low lying clouds and fog mar the stunning view. Trails wind down the hills around weeping willows trees beside trickling streams to the shore beside the ocean. Woodpeckers apply sharp taps to the sturdy trees in the interior of Smug. Visitors take long walks through the winding trails at dusk and dawn and wander down the embankments tossing sticks and leaves into the stream to watch them glide and chasing chickadee and bluejay song. “Sunseekers and flâneur travel here,” says the Guide. “For the natural beauty.” Artists make sculptures out of Smug rock, sand, and leaves. In the center of Smug sits one Confident House, wherein all are welcome. Here pancakes are served with syrup taken from the Smug trees. The sturdy house made of sticks and leaves withstands all weather. "It can be difficult to find in the fog and clouds," says Miss Doe Friend. "But warm,...

It hurts to step upon the volcanic rock of Fury. The rock bars way to the earth. A pickaxe chips away at the surface. Fury spreads. Borderlands build thick fences of wood, stone, and metal but Fury lava seeps underneath, polluting and drying neighboring lands. “It’s either sweltering or freezing, never comfortable,” says the Guide. The terraced rock of Fury, surrounded by mountains, overlooks the other lands. The inhabitants have pinched and hot faces. The volcano Fury erupts every hundred years adding layers of lava rock. A treeless land under pressure. Fury blossoms open once a year spiking red petals which quickly wither. Steam rises. Flat black leaves of algae grow over the ponds making their surfaces dark and undrinkable. The Tower Impatience rises in the sunken valley of volcanic Fury. Travelers may climb its spiral staircase, up and up. There are locked doors all around the stairwell. Masked servants hold the keys. From within creatures scratch and whine. There is...

Mud slicks run down the sloping hills of Sluggish. The inhabitants live in thatched huts beside muddy ponds. When Sluggish dries, it cracks. Mud monsters leave deep footprints and trails left by their long mud-covered tails. Sloping muddy hills slide. Mud flows block pathways. The mud limits freedom of movement. Passage becomes unpredictable. One spring rainfall and everything, but the mud, comes to a sliding, slippery halt. Fogged sits on a muddy slope of Sluggish. One day the entire city and the Castle Fogged will slide down the hill. Every year, the Castle slides a closer to the edge. When it gets too close, everyone must evacuate or risk sliding with Fogged into the mud pool. Fog covers the dome of Fogged and hides the little mud huts from view. Inhabitants trade their wares, but few make good deals or get bargains. Everyone feels a bit cheated and unsure.

Deep blue seas crash against the high white cliffs of Trust Island. The daunting cliffs face sea-faring routes. On the lee side, a softer sea welcomes ships in past a coral reef. It parts into a calm bay with a smooth pink beach and shallow waters where Trust fish swim. They are slim white sticks with black eyes, darting yellow and electric blue stripes, and white and black discs with swishy tails. Mangoes, dragonfruits, guava, starfruit, and coconut grow in plenty. They plop ripe and unbruised onto the sand. Travelers to Trust find themselves at home. “This is exactly the change I needed,” they think. In the capitol, Acceptance, lost travelers, shipwrecked travelers form tribes. "The city lies deep within the cliffs," says the Guide. "Be prepared, there are no fresh fruits there, only dried. Those who live in Trust have been there a long time." "Inside Trust there is a Teleport Station, but only residents may use it. No outsider comes to Trust or Ac...

When the prickly volcanic rocks of Annoyance fall into the sea below, they float. Visitors climb warily across the rocks which stab and slice. Seabirds peck slim, sharp beaks into barnacles and gulls pry clams and oysters from their shells. Crabs scatter over the rocks with long. fuzzy, raised and segmented limbs, rough shells, and serrated claws. The soaked skies hold heavy grey rains. The dark sea attacks the rock shores. Volcanoes rise above the fields of their cold spew. Visitors come to see lava flows, but more often cross the dry, dull lava fields swearing. “I should have brought a second pair of shoes. The rocks have worn these near through!” says Miss Doe Friend. "You may borrow a pair of mine," says Miss Emeline Traveler, who is always more than prepared. She points, "Look, there are the red spires of Surprise!" In Annoyance, the Volcano Surprise erupts, when it will, with a great lava flow. A city of magma beings lives enflamed lives inside th...

Streaks of muted earth-colored mud run across the Disapproval flats. Mud burbles in Disapproval pools. It sticks to shoes and hooves. It dries and crusts and purples at night. Too hot to traverse, it gathers the sun’s heat and radiates waves in daytime. At night, it grows cold and barren. Sun-seeking  reptiles with poison skin and sharp teeth soak on the flats. Some walk on two-legs and raise their poison-clawed hands in greeting, “Hey, Traveler!” In the middle, lies the tar pit  Disgust. Seen from above, it looks like a small circle, but at eye level it stretches wide. From inside, it is a deep and never-ending place to drown in the thick. A great stench arises from the depths and a miasma of fog gases all who approach the capitol gates. The gates swing open at random intervals. Those roaming Disapproval may be swept in to Disgust. Disgust holds a farmer’s market on Tuesdays and where all of the wares of Disapproval are gathered and sold.

"We travel this geography of laughter and tears," writes Miss Emeline. "Today, we lounge in Love's geothermal pools. Black rocks rise all around us. The aurora ripples green and gold above us." Love is a land of  waterfall dramas where visitors come to sit in cottages and write. "In Love, cloaked from the wind, I stare into the fathomless sky. Meanwhile, Miss Doe Friend feeds the shaggy ponies carrots and runs a comb through their thick fur." "The sea swept, wind swept capitol Optimism has refreshing shores. The city runs along a beautiful bay. It has high spires and low taverns. I loved the libraries where visitors recite poetry." "The parades of Optimism, remind all what they have accomplished." "Miss Emeline and I often walked the walkway around the Optimism Bay," says Miss Doe Friend. "The rooms were toasty even when it was bitingly cold outside. We ate heartily." "The locals drink nourishing an...

Yellow boulders line Aggressiveness. Cracked earth splits the sandy red ground. Ribbons of shallow river drift into rocks. Thorny shrubs slice passing skin. Rain pounds. Snow flurries. Snow presses into the rocks, slicks, and melts into the river. Aggressiveness has two seasons. In summer, the heat weighs down travelers. In winter, cold wind blows through every layer of clothing. Travelers get lost in the Aggressive canyon. Later, their bones bleach white. On the edge of Aggressiveness, lies the rock city Anticipation. People cliff jump from Anticipation gliding down into Aggressiveness. They teeter on the cliff, then run and leap into the living wind, which captures them and steers them to a soft or hard land. They land in unexpected places. "Everyone is welcome in Anticipation," says the Guide. "The spiral spire is a place of holidays and new beginnings." "There are rooms, mazes, and libraries," says Miss Doe Friend. "So much to discover. I ...

An icy plain beneath clouded sky, Submission lies fenceless and exposed. There’s nowhere to run, except into the Palace of Grief. Submissioners ride on ice horses, elephants, and camels. They cross the plains searching, as they have been asked to seek. The plains are empty. In summer, they grow wheat, but it remains cold. They thresh and grind the grains to make flour. They knead bread loaves and bake them in great ovens. The bakeries of Submission are renowned. Travelers come to eat Submission bread. At night, Submissioners toss and turn together in longhouses. They wake reluctantly at dawn. Mice skitter across the wood floors. Rats crawl into the bakeries. The rodents grown bolder with each passing year. There are no cats. The Submissioners worship rats and feed them bits of warm bread. The equines eat grain. They have ice manes, ice trunks, and ice humps. The passing plain can be seen through their transparent necks. Beneath their ice skin their red and blue veins throb. Th...

Icy streams runs through Vigilance. Branches crack under the weight of ice. Frozen buds fall. As the day warms ice shards fall from the trees and shatter. Visitors follow fox prints through the snow. The foxes follow rabbit scent trails. Snow blankets the land. Ducks walk over icy ponds. During the day, trails become mud. Thin trees reach for the sky. Beings made of ice slowly walk under low, dark cloud cover. They watch the border. They look through icy eyes with blurred vision. Everything looks closer, wetter, and likely to break. Ice bricks wall the capitol Sadness where houses are made of ice sticks. Mourners come to the ice palace Grief surrounded by ice sculptures of mythical and long dead creatures. Anyone may enter through the Portal of Sadness (but no one sneaks by the borders of Vigilance). They may spent a night or a weeks in the ice city. Many visit the Grief Palace annually. Sadness glistens with melt during the day and at night freezes solid again.

Ungulates with horns and wings fly over Serenity. Rabbits duck into warrens or hunch under delicate blue skies. Foxes browse. Falcons peck and tear at delicate mushrooms spongy underfoot and in the mouth. Everyone eats the red, orange, pink, and blue gills. There’s enough to feed all. Warm rains patter. The sun warms. Sunrises and sunsets cast a pink glow. The wind whispers in a mother’s voice. Soft green grass covers the hill where horses roll. Cherry blossoms fall into still ponds. Tourists walk slowly around the park trail and watch. The horses nuzzle the ground and each other’s flanks. Daisies bloom deep within the grass. Rabbits nibble petals. In Serenity the doors of Temple Joy stand open. Supplicants rest on the soft, shiny floors beneath the high arcs. All rest against the many colored cushions. They wear soft slippers and robes and dance in the open spaces underneath the highest points of the arcs. Everyone's feet are well-cared for. They rub scented massage oils...

Pensiveness peaks create a pocked moonscape exposed to cold, empty space where life may reside but remains unseen. Below in caves and crevasses, deep scarred places, something wriggles. A flag stuck into the surface remains motionless. The hull of a shuttle sits upon charred rock. Mountains loom in the distance. Pinnacles provide uncertain landmarks. A tentacle could wrap around them. Are they scarred with claw marks? Something phosphorus glows in the dark. A yellow haze rises. It casts a smoky smell. Here on the remote moon mining colony Parsimonious inhabitants must wear helmets in order to breathe. Inside, they gasp for breath. The regulated gravity weighs on them. The regulators are old and in disrepair. The piped in oxygen is a bit thin and not quite right. The engineers are fear of scarcity so they over-ration everything: air, warmth, water. In the colony Parsimonious, large windows overlook the pocked rocks of Pensiveness. When not working in the mines, inhabitants stand...

The desert sand cracks in Uncertain. The hardened sand wavers under a step, softens and slides. Sidewinders glide over it. Armadillos soldier on leaving tiny tracks. Persistent grasses grow in clumps. Pinks blossom after midnight thunderstorms. Coyotes jump over possums. Cacti drink from underground wells. Groundhogs sip from puddles left by flash floods. The earth drains away after vicious, whipping rainstorms. The sand yields. Coyotes cry. Dust devils blossom. The bustling life clings to the ground hiding beige bodies a top beige earth, except the black hawks and kettles of vultures which fly over looking for carcasses to land beside and hold their wakes. In the capitol Lost, the streets are made of dust and worn wood platforms. Storefronts rise and display a few goods, stiff jeans, shirts, boots, and hats. Dust rises. The drinks, of golden liquor are even stiffer, and clears the senses of sense. Staggering down the planks. Staggering into the dust. Wobbling back and forth. Stum...

Mice run through fields of wind-whipped tassled grasses in Sassy. Cats pounce. Paths wander through, hither and thither, and then disappear. The wind snakes and turns the grasses away. Snakes slither. The villagers make dark bread from the rye grass flour. Visitors come to eat it smeared with thick butter. Mauve tassels top burgundy stalks. Red foxes nest in the grasses where brown and grey mice and rats and voles hide. Ducks and geese fly overhead on their way to waiting ponds with red reflections from the grass and sun. In the village capitol, Certain, stone homes sink into the grass fields. Inside are stone ovens and hearths. The inhabitants of Certain bake rye bread, pumpernickel, and other black and red breads. They watch the grains grow and ripen. They thresh the grains, grind the flour, and knead the dough. They place loaves to prove on warm stone slabs, watch them rise, and then bake them hard in the oven. They wear thick coats and caps and sturdy rubber boots. Many dark autu...

Main street of the little town of Good runs along a wide tree-lined river. In autumn, the leaves drop orange, red, and gold into the river. Temperatures are comfortable. Grapes purple on vines. Every yard has raised garden beds. People and deer walk the clean paths through parks. They enter little shops with peaked roofs. Dogs run alongside them and play together. Brilliant sunrises and sunsets charm visitors. Apples crispen pink, yellow, green on well-watered trees. They taste sweet and tart. People swim in the cool and slow river Good. Walkways winds through the valley. Miss Emeline Traveler nods and smiles, “This is a favorite places. Lots of land. Lots of space.” She takes an apple from a nearby tree and bites in. The capitol Happy holds many festivals. There are always farmer’s markets on Happy Street beside Good river. The Happy shops sell coconut ice cream and apple pies and tarts and figurines of dogs and deer. The shop cats like to play with the figurines and each ot...

Dry riverbeds etch vast Sullen. Wave cemeteries. Sand sharpened by sun with dry, cracked ridges. Time passes. The sharp rises remain. Waves have edges. Grey-brown rocks line what were once shores. Sparse grasses fill in around the cracks. Stunted dunes rise and fall. Grasshoppers click and call. Grey dragonflies flit. Occasionally a cloud bursts. Rain falls and rivulets run. The cracks fill and spill with rainwater. People pitch tents for shelter in the wilderness. The campground Reluctant serves as the Sullen capitol. People sleep beside lizards in tents. When it rains, the lizards scuttle under stones and everyone gets wet as water rushes through their flimsy homes. People come and go in droves. They marvel at the night sky filled with stars and the moon so bright. In daytime, they eat canned food prepared in solar-powered camp stoves. It takes hours for the food to warm beneath the dim sun. The people gather silent and storyless around tepid plates wary of each others' jud...

Remorse flows half seen and half-soaked. Streams streak through the wetland. Long grasslike algae waves in the waters, turning deeper green or yellow with the seasons. Here jeweled-eyed, whiskered fish speak wisdom. They know secrets. "What is something extraordinary that could be done now, today?” Miss Emeline Traveler asks. She writes in her book beside the stream or contemplates the algae strands. The fertile frogs of Remorse sing at night, telling stories in burbles. The capitol, Disappointed, is a vast port city. Disappointed alleyways and pathways run along the waterways. In the large Disappointed Park bridges cross over the streams of Remorse. Disappointed's huge domed buildings loom over the waterfront. "What do they house?" asks Miss Doe Friend. "Grains? Minerals? Ores?" Stately houses lines the cliffs of Disappointed. The city shine by the sea. It radiated prosperousness under a clear blue sky. "Close up it is dirty and unke...

Spires of ancient cities poke from the dunes of Enraged surrounded by sun-cooked sand. At night, the heat rises and dissipates. Few survive it. People attempt long runs through the hot land earning medals. Anyone may come and try. Few succeed. Remorseless they trudge up mountains through the sand with unwavering energy burning bright until the chill sunless night. The ancient ruins Terrified stand in the middle of the Enraged dunes — a ring of burnt red stone. Red ghosts haunt Terrified and give the runners hallucinations. Blood pools in the circle of ruins, where once a fountain flowed. Everyone may visit and stand among the ghostly ruins. In a daze they watch the red beasts and awake to find themselves submerged in sand up to their chests and sinking slowly. Sand snaked writhe and scarab beetles cast curses. The Terrified visitor, once rescued never forgets the experience. "The whole city stinks of iron and rot. I thought I'd be food for the carnivorous scavengers,...

A roiling pit of mud, Angry burbles, bubbles, up pant legs. Steps sink in deep. There are pockets of hot mud and frozen ones. Always Angry clings and coats. Visitors sink into the land. They walk through it looking for treasures or for a way out which becomes a treasure in and of itself as they sink deeper and find nothing. They must be airlifted out. Still Angry clings to their stretchers. It dries to them. They find it later, clay cracking in the crevasses of their bodies, in folds of skin, wrinkling, becoming dry sand or hard clay chunks in their clothes.  No one likes Angry. No one recommends it. But no one can resist the allure of the mystical mud pots bubbling purple and red.  “There are health benefits to the mud,” a guide says. But no one can say with certainly what. “It is gory and gross,” says Miss Emeline. “A completely unforgivable place.” But when you pull Miss Doe Friend aside surprisingly, she whispers, "I must say though, I found it rather glorious....

In the Sad soggy rainforest rough-barked trees with red, brown and black patches and upward curving limbs hang with thick yellow-green moss. Moss coats the forest floor. Every step soft. Every step soaked. Stone steps line the walkways of Sad. Water drips and trickles. Rain patters and patterns the sand. Worms churn the brown earth. Delicate white flowers bloom in the moss. Wet, silent creatures haunt Sad. They live beneath the ponds. Beneath Sad pond, lies the capitol city Bad, where everyone enters underwater and then transports to through the wet to the sullen land.

The mountain erupts. Glaciers slide, crystal blue, spiraling up. The snow asters and glacier daisies lift their blue heads, pinstriped petals trembling. Evergreen trees shake on the snow line.  “What a place for quiet contemplation,” Miss Emeline Traveler exclaims. Miss Doe Friend shudders. How so Inspiring? The Invigorated scenery lives still and cold beneath a crystal blue sky. Snow threatens the fresh, thin air. It nearly cracks. Waterfalls crash, streams twinkle, lakes lap the shores.  Everywhere: sapphire blue and emerald green waters glide and slide. The Inspiring ranger station in a mountain village on the mountainside has many maps. The Inspiring rangers tell visitors where to begin to seek adventure and how to find their way back if they become lost. The Inspiring villagers prepare trek meals in good, nutrient-dense packs. They talk about adventures and organize jaunts to glacier lakes and peaks. The Inspiring immigrate to Invigorated because they admi...