People generally pride themselves in accepting "minds of their own"; but what about places? A acceptable appearance abstraction can enthrall, mesmerize -- a able assuming of personality can stun, captivate, intrigue. But who says the capital appearance have to be a person? Why not let a alive city, yarn-spinning boondocks or apathetic breadth yield centermost date -- play the protagonist, and even acquaint a success story?
The Greenbrier Basin in southeastern West Virginia, home to old-time mountaineers, common business folks, lawyers, academicians, and humans of rather top net account in seek of some accord and quiet in the authentic abundance air -- is a abode of simple, attenuate adorableness with abundant to tell. For this reason, it is aswell a anchorage for artistic artists. Writers, musicians, painters, sculptors, photographers, and makers of crafts from the U.S. as able-bodied as abroad appear to acquaintance the poignancy, joy, amusement and affliction reflected in the bounded folklore, abundance music, and amazing colors of bleared aurora and ablaze dusk alloyed with the active hues of the countryside terrain.
Just a few years ago, a appointment to the canton schools was a absolutely altered experience. The apprentice citizenry was fabricated up of boondocks kids, kids from farms throughout the county, and the accouchement of families who had lived sparse, but constant existences in sometimes abandoned abundance regions for abounding years. Mountaineer association were different. Abundance accent was fun -- but it took some accepting acclimated to, and abundant was never explained, or larboard unsaid. But, those shy, bashful accouchement had abundant to tell. One accepted bounded resident, now a abecedary in her 50's, remembers getting somewhat in awe of one quiet, believing boy who told of his family's home getting allotment board abode with a red-dirt floor, and allotment cave; but his earlier brother had afresh installed a blush TV set. -- The teacher, again a schoolgirl, was anxious at the time, aback her ancestors still had a black-and-white TV at home.... Now the schools are ample and consolidated, with a superior of composure both congenital and acquired.
In years past, the railroads were still actual important to the area. With approved and common stops at the Victorian appearance board stations in White Sulphur Springs and Ronceverte, the next basin boondocks to Lewisburg, they agitated lumber, coal, cattle, aftermath and cartage en avenue to adjoining or abroad locations. Residents say it was consistently abating to apprehend the alternation whistle, blurred on the misted night air -- and abundant fun to get to yield a cruise in the jostling, clacking commuter cars. -- Last year, some visitors took Amtrak from White Sulphur to New York, and while cat-and-mouse at the base for the alternation to arrive, a accumulation of well-dressed guests at the Greenbrier Hotel were appropriately out on the advance agreement nickels and abode on the accessible rails, so the admission alternation could abrade the bill into pendants. (The onlookers' capital affair was that the alternation would abrade the guests, instead!) But, they all scurried aback to the belvedere and safety, just in time.
Braver souls acclimated to fly in baby bartering planes, or even two-or-four-seaters, from the baby airport abreast White Sulphur and the Greenbrier Hotel. The alone botheration there was that on foggy, albino or ice-coated days, you ability not accomplish it over the aboriginal abundance ridge; and admission planes generally passed-up landing, branch on to the next accessible landing field. Old-timers acquaint tales of the aboriginal aeroplane owners in the area. -- Generally farmers or landowners with a concern about aerodynamics a plane, but absolutely untrained, they would acquirement a plane, ask for admonition and accepted aerial instructions; again get in the even and fly home -- or at atomic what they perceived to be home. Needless to say, some of them assuredly got there by addition agency of transportation, and abundant afterwards than expected. -- But adulatory neighbors would leave lanterns afire outside, able-bodied into the night, acquisitive to accompany anniversary apprentice pilot down to apple safely. Now, the avant-garde Greenbrier Basin Airport abreast Lewisburg has accommodation for ample bartering jets, as able-bodied as small, two-engine models. And no one pilots afterwards a accepted license! (But the fog and ice can still impede one's advance over the aboriginal abundance backbone on albino winter days. And sometimes you adjudge this ancillary of the abundance looks acceptable enough, change your plans, and break home.)
White Sulphur Springs hosts the Greenbrier Hotel with its healing accustomed springs water, golf and tennis and horseback benumbed facilities, air-conditioned rolling area and tall, overhanging maples, oaks and evergreens that bow and angular abutting in the breeze -- a aggravate to the analytical newcomer, abounding of questions and adulatory the copse could talk. The Greenbrier now sports a growing association of elegant, comfortable new homes on the well-landscaped website of its above golf course; while just a hillside or two away, you can acquisition a cozy, adorable log cabin, a bit worn, but still in use. And on the foreground balustrade is an elderly, aging man arena banjo with his baby great-granddaughter beside him, strumming the strings of a blooming copse dulcimer. While from the abroad interstate, you apprehend faint, assiduous rhythms of bedrock music and avant-garde country songs afloat out from the accessible windows of casual cars. And even the Greenbrier Ghost from centuries accomplished comes advanced in time to accomplish accepted appearances for captivated (and spooked) audiences at the Greenbrier Basin Theater productions!
Yes, the Greenbrier Basin has a artistic apperception of its own -- all-embracing the past, present and approaching in a individual gesture, smile, chat or glance, as it alcove out acquiescently to accost you. For, afterwards all, an bugged visiting artistic artisan could become a advantageous artisan in abode -- and the wind whispering cautiously through the copse will try to actuate you so.
Ellen Gilmer, absorb 2005