The Bible Belt

by David Shumate

It’s a vast and fertile land. Soybeans and corn grow in this soil.
Wheat and tobacco. A little sorghum. It’s not dramatic terrain
with ocean waves crashing against the cliffs. It’s mostly gently
rolling plains. Long stretches of prairie. You know you’ve entered
it when the signs along the highway begin telling you what God
wants you to do. Those who live here regard it as their duty to
make these things known. Otherwise the rest of the country
would be left in the dark. The bibles in this region are larger than
elsewhere. Most weigh over a hundred pounds. It takes two strong
men to lift them into a pickup truck to haul off to church. All the
women dress up on Sundays. And all the white men shake hands.

“The Bible Belt” by David Shumate, from The Floating Bridge. © University of Pittsburgh Press, 2008. Published with permission