The link below is to an essay I wrote inspired once again by my time in the mountains of Western North Carolina. This is an academic research paper that I wrote because of my memories of the cloud shadows, as they moved across the faces of the mountains. Annie Dillard discusses similar shadow movements, and I felt an immediate connection.
“Shadow Mountains“
![Shadow Mtns. View from near Clingman's Dome in TN from September 2016](https://7d62cb.p3cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/mountainsblog.jpg)
The paper was very specific and narrow in its focus, as my first paper for this class was way too broad and general. The professor suggested I focus more narrowly, and I learned how to do very close readings and in depth analysis. I surprised myself with this one, but again the connection to nature, and the Appalachian mountains in particular, are here and made this one of my favorite essays because I was able to dig deep and make connections in this essay that I never had before.