27 July 2025, @mariannewest's Freewrite Writing Prompt Day 2811: dark days in summer
“Two Septembers in a row, we find ourselves in the dark days of summer – two huge unnatural disasters in a row that have nothing to do with this disaster of the pandemic. First fire with high wind, then water with the earth – will it take all four elements coming at once to take Lofton County off the map before we make the changes we need to make?”
This letter to the editor in the Big Loft Bulletin was the death knell for long-term incumbents in office, Lofton County, VA – by the time the Bulletin's readers were at last fed up with the same behaviors that the people who put out the Lofton County Free Voice, Una Voz Libre, and Native Voice were fed up with, it was the end of the world for incumbent political careers.
Another way to know the careers of three-quarters of the people in construction were also over: one of the great-grandsons of Edwin Ludlow, whose letter to the editor was printed in all four papers and the Veteran's Lodge newsletter, showed all of them up.
“So, I was reading over my grandfather's shoulder because news is kinda important in building, and I had a question, Mr. Editor. I was wondering why folks just didn't measure how deep the big poles needed to go on Bayard Heights. You gotta measure stuff. You can't have a 90-foot pole going where you need a 200-foot pole because that's not gonna work. It's like you can't put nine Legos where 20 need to go. Your stuff is going to fall over. I also wanted to ask why people here make fun of San Francisco's big leaning tower when we're doing the same stuff around here, but I know stuff is funny when someone else does it. But when your stuff falls over, and there are people who need to live there, that's not funny.
“I am willing to come fix whatever the people need, Mr. Editor. I just need a lot more Legos. Sincerely, Grayson Ludlow.”
“P.S. I did a blueprint of how you build a pole as long as you need it, and my brother Robert did a redprint in red crayon just in case you like red better. Let us know who needs them. We have plenty of crayons and construction paper.”
Every editor added a note. “Mr. Grayson Ludlow is the second youngest grandson and Mr. Robert Edward Ludlow III is the youngest grandson of the great architect and engineer Edwin Ludlow. The two Ludlow brothers are six and five years old, respectively.”
The Trents and the Stepforth adults, neighbors to the Ludlows, broke out laughing when they saw this.
“Grayson and Robert are going to fix the county – right on, little bros!” Mrs. Melissa Trent said.
“And the Veteran's Lodge ran the pictures of them in their little hard hats and tool belts and their toolboxes!” Sgt. Vincent Trent said, and then had to get over by his father-in-law, Mr. Thomas Stepforth Sr., who was just about to fall out laughing.
“People, the reaction videos to all these – I have the popcorn popper going overtime!” days-from-18-year-old Vanna Trent said.
“Listen – when folks realize they have been had by other folks who are not as smart as a kindergartener and a first grader!” 21-year-old Melvin Trent said.
“Ain't it the truth,” eight-year-old Gracie Trent said. “Some adults need more help than they wanna say, but the news is kinda out there.”
“It sho' 'nuff is!” Mrs. Velma Stepforth said as she got on the other side of her laughing husband and settled down laughing with him on the sofa.
Meanwhile, Grayson and Robert sat in their family's Lego pile with their sister ten-year-old Glendella, having no clue what their offering to civil discourse was doing in the county. The only clue they would have for some years was that the Ludlow grandparents would put the blueprint and the redprint in a frame with all the newspaper reprints, and hang it up on the family wall in due time.