BlueJacket, Inside Out
Part 4, Section 1 — Bobby BlueJacket and Bobby Wilson strolled across the Stone Brothers Buick car lot under lines
Michael P. Daley
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Starlight
To fans of classic films the name Jennifer Jones evokes images of a brunette beauty with distinctive high cheekbones,
Les Howell
The Secret Wheat Deal
In 1968, Richard Nixon began calling for an end to the Vietnam War. As a candidate for the presidency in 1968, he gave
James C. Thomas
Last Nice Day
There is a television channel that only shows the live radar, and my parents watch it the way other people watch
Meg Thompson
The Pacifist Preacher & Quanah Parker
The Fourth Cavalry mustered at the gates of Fort Concho in San Angelo, Texas. Led by Colonel Ranald Mackenzie, the
Jay Cyril Mastrud
The Time I Shot Donald Trump
There was a year—I don’t remember the exact one but definitely around the height of his new-found celebrité in
Juan Reinoso
Trust Me
I used to think the funniest thing I’d ever heard Donald Trump say was when, one day in his office, he handed me a
Mark Singer
Leaning
At the 2016 Republican National Convention, which I covered for Flavorwire, I said (perhaps too optimistically) to
Tatiana Ryckman
Mathematical Traditions
American Indians generally have had a pragmatic orientation to the use and study of mathematics. In most Indian
Chris Landon
Our Own Formulas
The 27th of May, 1949, was a momentous day for Louis “Speedy” Wiley, my grandfather. In the span of 24 hours, he
Apollonia Piña
Okie Islam
In late March 1963, field minister Arthur 7-X held a press conference in Oklahoma City. Nation of Islam travelers had
James Murray
Death Under the Strawberry Moon
By 1794, the Cherokees were settling in the West in growing numbers, and conflict with the Osage over hunting rights
James Murray
Firelight Along the Frontier
Flames rushed skyward from a structure less than a mile away across the sagebrush. At the height of another dry desert
Michael Canyon Meyer
The Old Ways
In one of the stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were
Annie Heartfield Hartzog
A New Day
Last September in the town of Bartlesville, 15-year-old Blue Haase got a ride to his local school board meeting. During
Molly Bullock
The Skunk Paint Years
It’s customary to begin with introductions amongst the Sioux. Even though this is a one-sided introduction—and
Marcus Bush
The Greatest of Wrongs
The initial idea of the compilation of this work was to give the reading public an authentic record of the private life
Geronimo and S.M. Barrett
Weather You Care
A colorful sign reads, “MOTEL Reno.” The sky is dark with clouds in an array of white and black. Rain patters the
Mason Powell
Rhyme & Punishment
I come to David L. Moss every week to teach poetry to incarcerated women. It’s become so routine that all of the
Beth Niestemski
Down Through There
I took a moment to see all my friends and Brothers one last time, then I was off to the laundry. My closest Brothers
Jimmy Maxwell
In Transit
My alarm was set for 7:00 am, and when I woke up, it felt like Christmas morning. My boyfriend’s mom, Denise,
Katie Rain Hill
The Piano Player
For a divorced woman getting by as a music teacher in 1921, Patti Adams Shriner achieved an incredibly bold ambition
Scott Pendleton
The Cyclone
It was Sunday afternoon, April 3, 1892, still and sultry, with a black cloud lying ominously back in the west and
Francis Moore Milburn
At Risk
While driving to a visit in Adair County on an early afternoon in the rolling brown of a northeastern
Christopher Murphy
How to Arrest the Increase of Homicides in America
It must be conceded that we are in a peculiar condition in this nation today—in such a condition that, in my
Liam Carey
A Childhood Noir
My earliest recollections are of being pinched. Not in the figurative sense, but actually. I was an awkward,
Jim Thompson
The Green Glacier
"I saw that the name you put to a thing depended on where you stood and where it stood. And… and here’s the
Kyle Walker
Hair Squared
When Vidal Sassoon realized in the 1950s that he wanted to “change hairdressing to a different form of art,” he
Marcia Beauchamp
The Miracle of ‘Mass’
My wife and I drove the handful of miles from our beloved 92-year-old bungalow in Mesta Park to the Oklahoma City Civic
Jake Johnson
What Rhymes with Hideous Car Wreck?
Before he was recognized by Forbes as one of the world’s wealthiest hip-hop stars, before Jim Morrison and The Doors
James Benjamin
A Ride With Bob
Confession time: Based on how huge an influence Bob Wills has always been on Asleep at the Wheel, you might think that
Ray Benson
The Filth and the Fury
Although Tulsa’s Cain’s Ballroom later became famous for catching future superstars like U2, The Police, and Van
John Wooley & Brett D. Bingham
Radio Revival
Somewhere in between the mindless banter of sports talk radio, the bubblegum lyrics of top 40 hits, and the NPR
Gail Banzet-Ellis
Old Toy Trains, Little Toy Tracks
In an unremarkable field north of Route 66 sits a small collection of metal memorabilia, including a cactus, a Martian,
Rhys Martin
Borrowed Traditions
This past June, the Japanese fiddler Okano Susumu1 celebrated his 59th birthday by taking time out from a work trip to
Denis Gainty
So Long, Tom Skinner
The door to room 1451 at St. John Medical Center in Tulsa was practically revolving. Tom Skinner’s hospital room was
Lindsay Kline
Woody’s Jesus
Now as I look around, it’s mighty plain to me This world is such a great and a funny place to be The gamblin’
Faith Phillips
Subterranean Psychonaut
He stood naked by the roadside with a blanket draped around his hips, feebly reaching out for the glimmering cars as
Michael Mason, Chris Sandel and Lee Roy Chapman
Wind Cannot Dry, Water Cannot Wet
Today is May 1. However, this day will have come and gone by the time you read this. I intentionally chose this day
Egunwale F. Amusan
The Last Lynching in Cimarron
At the little weather-beaten station one hot Sunday morning a single passenger alighted from the dirty car pulled by
Cyrus Townsend Brady
Make War on Peyote
Ponca City, April 16—There are some Indian tribes in the United States, alleged believers in Christianity, who, in
C.M. Sarchet
Devotion and Consciousness
The Hindu Temple is non-sectarian and is open to all worshipers and other visitors who wish to know about Hinduism,
Subhash Kak
Scalpel
Almost every patient mentions how it’s cold in the operating room. We keep the room around 60 degrees, in part to
David Schneider
The Gold and the Glory
When Oral Roberts was 16, afflicted with tuberculosis and convinced he was going to die, a voice came to him out of the
David Fritze
Stalking the Smoking Gun
Every so often, perhaps once a week, the Oklahoma State Senate closes its doors, posts aging sentries outside in the
David Fritze
An Astrological Look at Oklahoma
Most people know about the Sun Sign column in the newspaper, but did you know that astrologers do much more? We
Lynn Bootes
Love Beyond Belief
When you have a church that is bound together by a promise rather than a belief system, you free people to be honest
Reverend Dr. Marlin Lavanhar
Heaven Is a Place for Sale
Roberts Liardon loves talking about the sofa he sat on in Heaven. “It was alive,” he tells the congregation at
Sarah Morice Brubaker
Denise Bell
It was a road trip to the Taos Wool Festival that inspired Tulsa native Denise Bell to hand-dye her own yarn. That was
Chris Dykes
Reminiscences of an Early Dental Practitioner in Western Oklahoma
It was a wide open range country, featured by boundless rolling hills carpeted by green grass and acres of many hued
Dr. F. C. Holmes
Malissa
1983 A week before, I bought my first maternity gear at the Goodwill, a brown empire-waist polyester top with
Jeanetta Calhoun Mish
Teenage Vengeance
“Wake up.” My sister was shaking my shoulder, and not gently. I opened one eye. According to the clock on my
Jennifer Latham
The Opening of Oklahoma from the European Perspective
The following accounts from European newspapers give an idea of what the Europeans read about the opening of Oklahoma.
H.C. Peterson
9:02 AM
I hurtled down Interstate 40, late for work, as usual, barely noticing the beautiful spring morning. I was frustrated
Tiffany Doerr Guerzon
They Died For Their Sins
On August 10, 1966, just after 10 p.m., James French walked to the electric chair. Escorted in by two guards, French
Bob Gregory
Steak, Eggs, and a Submachine Gun
“You want me to tell you a story?” asked Marilee Macias, a native of Perry, Oklahoma, with kind eyes and perfectly
Ryan Daly
A Six-Gun and a Song
Woody Guthrie and Pretty Boy Floyd never met, but that didn’t keep Oklahoma’s favorite balladeer and bank robber
Dale Ingram
My Uncle Was an Astro Zombie!
My uncle was an astro zombie. I know you don’t believe me. No one does. When I whisper it to my neighbors, their
Dale Ingram
Oklahoma: Land of Gore
Sometimes the gore tumbles from the cottonwood trees on the South Canadian River. Those were squirrels that never
Dale Ingram
Eulogy for Ireland
*** Me, Shrouded in green, white, and orange I wake up tossing up electric blankets in my single-bed
Declan Kiely
A Creek Woman Moves to Northern New York
*** At the market they never have what I need: sofke corn, dried pea hulls, canuche balls wrapped in
Stacy Pratt
Night Hoops
With tar still sludging our fingers from roofing jobs worked through the heat of day, with scratches down our
Benjamin Myers
Onehorse, OK, pop. 1,000: Saaaaaaalute
Driving home tonight, I see Loretta Lynn on a casino billboard & take a left turn to
Benjamin Myers
Ensigns and Sensei
On April 5, 1945, Oklahoma A&M President Henry Bennett received a telegram from U.S. Senator Elmer
R.E. Graalman Jr.
Surviving and Sustaining at Gosney Farms
One night in 1997, a concerned neighbor called John and Kris (Ratzlaff) Gosney of Cheyenne Valley, Oklahoma, with a
R.E. Graalman Jr.
Anchovies
we’ve come all the way from Oklahoma for locals
Victoria McArtor
Bombed-Out Boise City
It was about half past midnight on July 5, 1943. The heat of the day had given way to the usual cooling that occurs
David Dary
Living Room Kitchen
I am missing two fingerprints on my right hand. The neat spiral of lines on my ring and middle fingers suddenly flatten
Sasha Martin
Renegade Golf
Cheyenne Golf Course, in Cheyenne, Oklahoma, is more reminiscent of Tom Joad than Tom Watson. It consists of nine
Tyler Palmateer
The Day Disaster Struck
Watch any television newscast, read any newspaper, and you’ll know that humans are fascinated with catastrophe.
Connie Cronley
Much Love Lost
February is the month of true love; that’s why it’s the shortest month of the year. Valentine’s Day has been a
Connie Cronley
Milking It
My mother pulled her flame-orange Pinto into the cratered lot at the entrance to our neighborhood and silently handed
Jennifer Luitwieler
Tongues of Fire in Kansas
Pentecostalism, a branch of Christianity that grew out of Protestantism in the early 20th century, has 280 million
Mike Mariani
Tinkering with the Machinery of Death
On the morning of December 14, 1976, Charlie Brooks Jr. and Woody Loudres waited outside a liquor store on Rosedale
Mike Mariani
Video Killed the Pulpit Star
A young guy wearing a cobalt blue hoodie and shiny leather jacket has just robbed a woman’s purse. Rummaging through
Mike Mariani
Fast Forward
As we move yet one more step towards dust Desire fades and jealousy and
Warren Brown
The Murder on Turkey Creek
In November 1876, two men met in Medicine Lodge, Kansas, and discussed their desires to cross the Indian Territory into
Martha Buntin
Oklahomans in the Spanish-American War
Many of us retain a vivid memory of the stirring days from the sinking of the battleship Maine, February 15, to the
John Alley
Letter from Ferguson
By sundown Monday evening, November 24, the scene in front of the Ferguson Police Department was nothing short of
Derek Dyson
A Pentecost of Bicycles
The attraction between a boy and his bike, as William Maxwell writes about the attraction between boys and dogs, can be
David McGlynn
Making the Case for Martyrdom
Stanley Rother was an unlikely martyr. He was born in a small farmhouse outside Okarche, a small town in western
Mason Beecroft
When Kansas Was Ahead of its Time
With the celebration, remembrance, and commentary that has come with 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act this
Shawna Bethell
Memoirs of a Pioneer Teacher
I was born February 1, 1870, on a farm near Centropolis in Franklin County, Kansas. We moved to Ottawa when I was three
Harriet Patrick Gilstrap
Love Smells of a Man Named Floyd
It is difficult to offer up our hearts like raw chicken on a hibachi grill often the chefs are not
Jennifer E. Hudgens
Foul Weather
Some things you can’t figure out. Not even with a whole heap of scratch paper and a ribbon of data from a chattering
Daniel H. Wilson
For Rachel, Who Is Not Lost
A seagull on the moon is not lost, She is a student of lunar soils. A cookie in a salad is not lost, It is
Rob Roensch
The Homestead
The cruiser cab hummed all around WilDer, nearly electric with the energy of corralled students on holiday. Mal, a live
Paige Duke
It’s Hip to Be Square
The term “comic con” is misleading. When Wizard World brings its version of a comic con to Tulsa for the first time
Jamie Pierson
Wearing the Wrong Colors
He got started quick. He found me out, honed in, and covered me at the bar. The clash was long awaited. I went
Drew Tully
On the Fly
On a cool March evening, we set out a sandwich board that read “SHORT ORDER POEMS 1 FOR $5 FRESHLY TYPED &
Timothy Bradford & Chad Reynolds
Torment Relieved in Song
On October 25, 1914, banker John Allyn Smith and schoolteacher Martha Little welcomed their first of two sons, John
Cheryl Pallant
The Essence of Forever
I moved off campus my junior year at Long Island University into a second-floor room of a home in the cheerful village
Cheryl Pallant
Passing Over
I check my email before going to bed and find a message from my ex-husband with “Sad News” in the subject line. I
Cheryl Pallant
Suspicious Mind
The November race for Oklahoma’s 3rd Congressional District, which spills out of the Panhandle and fills the western
Matt Lardner
Hard Times Oklahoma: A Russell Lee Photo Essay
Seventy-five years ago, in April of 1939, John Steinbeck published his fictionalized account of the severe hardships
Catherine Whitney
The Dirt Room
She couldn’t resist the photographs online, or the sellers’ description: Adorable Cape Cod with walk-out
Aimee Parkison
Ten-Dollar Word
Transcendence? That’s a ten-dollar word, Delbert. But yeah, I’ve got one for you. This happened the summer I was
Steve Garrison
The Train Singer’s Song
I had been watching freight trains from the window of my 10:00 Tuesday-Thursday class all semester. The classroom
George McCormick
You Are Going to Be a Good Man
The moon has been off my left shoulder for thirty-seven years and I’ve never known a blue this bad, this purple. Lots
George McCormick
Working Class Hero
Reed picked change off the floorboard of his Buick parked outside the Blue Note to pay the cover for the Oi! show. It
Angela Morris