WEBVTT

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The air smelled of crushed green stems and

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rain -warmed earth.

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Cade adjusted the straw basket on his back,

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his bare feet sinking slightly into the rich,

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dark mud of the embankment.

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Around him, the hillside rolled downward in a

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breathtaking, man -made staircase,

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a staggering geometry of carved earth stretching toward

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the valley floor.

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Generations of his ancestors had coaxed these emerald

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rice terraces from the steep tropical incline,

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turning gravity into a partner rather than an

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adversary.

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Today, the landscape hummed with a calm agricultural

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rhythm.

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Thin monsoon clouds hovered lazily just above the

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ridge,

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catching the bright daylight and casting soft, shifting

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shadows across the valley.

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Reaching the edge of his plot, Cade paused

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to admire the water.

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Fed by a high mountain spring, it spilled

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gently from one flooded patty to the next,

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a cascading mirror that caught the brilliance of

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the noon sun.

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Every surface possessed a detailed, glassy texture,

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reflecting the vibrant green shoots of young rice

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swaying in the gentle breeze.

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He knelt down, rolling up his trousers, ready

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to begin the day's tending.

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In this quiet corner of Asia, time was

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measured not by clocks,

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but by the steady flow of water and

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the patient growth of the green earth.