®
BITTER
May 2017 DoSouthMagazine.com
CONTENTS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / OWNER Catherine Frederick CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Scott Frederick MANAGING EDITOR Marla Cantrell CONTRIBUTING WRITERS / PHOTOGRAPHERS Marla Cantrell Stevie Seibert Desjarlais Catherine Frederick Jade Graves Amelia Haskins Dwain Hebda Megan Lankford Rachael McGrew Jessica Sowards Stoney Stamper James Stefiuk GRAPHIC DESIGNER Artifex 323 - Jessica Mays
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PROOFREADER Charity Chambers PUBLISHER Read Chair Publishing, LLC
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JUST SAY SPAHHH… Is your mom da bomb? Show her with these pampering gifts you made yourself!
BANANAS FOSTER FRENCH TOAST Oh my goodness! This breakfast recipe will make you happy to get out of bed in the morning!
TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALLGAME, Y’ALL It’s a great month for baseball, especially in Arkansas. Find out everything you need to know about the Naturals and the Travelers.
PRAISE THE LORD FOR PAWHUSKA Need an idea for a day trip? The Pioneer Woman’s Mercantile in Pawhuska, Oklahoma fits the bill!
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ADVERTISING INFORMATION Catherine Frederick - 479.782.1500 Catherine@DoSouthMagazine.com
EDITORIAL INFORMATION Marla Cantrell - 479.831.9116 Marla@DoSouthMagazine.com ©2017 Read Chair Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. The opinions contained in Do South® are exclusively those of the writers and do not represent those of Read Chair Publishing, LLC. as a whole or its affiliates. Any correspondence to Do South® or Read Chair Publishing, LLC., including photography, becomes the property of Read Chair Publishing, LLC. Do South® reserves the right to edit content and images. Printed in the U.S.A. | ISSN 2373-1893 Cover Image: Alena Haurylik
FOLLOW US Annual subscriptions are $30 (12 months), within the contiguous United States. Subscribe at DoSouthMagazine.com or mail check to 4300 Rogers Avenue, Suite 20-110, Fort Smith, AR, 72903. Single issues are available upon request for $7. Inquiries or address changes, call 479.782.1500.
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letter from the editor
Right here in Arkansas, there’s a natural
I'm not going to lie. I probably set a new
feature called Pinnacle Mountain. It
world record for how long it took to
rises more than a thousand feet above
make that climb. I hugged each boulder.
the Arkansas River Valley and is a long-
I pressed every ounce of myself to the
standing landmark for those who love
rocks, for fear I’d tumble down, never
the outdoors and seek adventure.
to be seen again. Never once did I look behind me, or to the side, on my way
My friend, Tiffany, called me a while
up. I focused only on the boulder in
back. “Let’s hike Pinnacle,” she said.
front of me, conquered it and moved
“It’ll be fun!” she said. The weather
ever so slowly to the next one. Until
was perfect, and I needed a day out of
finally, we made it to the summit.
the office, so I agreed. Hiking a mountain, how hard could it be? One small
I sat down to collect myself, finally
problem, though. She knew I was terri-
standing a few minutes later to take in
fied of heights. I repeat, she knew I was terrified of heights.
the breathtaking beauty that surrounded me. Miles and miles of our beautiful state, her mountains and rivers, and small towns
We started at the East Summit Trail. Nothing crazy, slight incline,
made smaller by my distance from them. Butterflies were every-
trees, small rocks. After a while, we paused to rest. I looked down
where. It was picture-perfect. It was worth it.
and could still make out the terrain below. Growing confident, I looked beyond the trees and noticed the view. It was at that moment
Sometimes we need encouragement to get us past fear. Tiffany
I realized how far up we were, and how far we still had to go.
knew that what waited at the top was worth my angst in getting there. And she knew I’d never do it on my own. So, she pushed.
I peered upward. The rocks, now boulders, had multiplied by
And I am forever grateful.
the thousands. There was an endless supply of them – stacked precariously up an incline so steep I couldn’t see the summit. So,
I don't know what mountain you're trying to climb right now.
there it was, this mountain. Tall, stoic, inspiring, unmovable. And
But I do know this: you can make it. So, just for today, take a
then there was me. Afraid, nauseated, breakable, sweating.
small, shaky step. I'll be cheering you on, imagining how happy you’ll be when you finally make it to the top!
I gently reminded Tiffany I hated heights. She replied, “Yeah, I remember that.” And then added, “I made my mom hike this with me once – she made it.” So, there it was, I had a choice. Hang my head and accept defeat, or put on my big girl panties and see what was waiting for me at the top.
~Catherine
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Want Results? Choose Do South® Magazine!
images Jade Graves Photography
Fort Smith Medical Center and Beineman Aesthetics advertises in Do South® because we love the hometown focus of the magazine and because the content is somewhat like Paul Harvey’s The Rest of the Story. Do South® has such great articles that showcase the River Valley. The articles feature interesting places, and things to do in this region, as well as in-depth stories that allow us to learn more about the extraordinary people who live here. We got to know Catherine Frederick, the owner and editor-in-chief, when the magazine had offices adjacent to ours. We got hooked on the magazine, and we knew that by advertising, we could reach our current patients and clients who were die-hard readers of Do South®, and new ones that found us through the publication.
~Tonya Beineman, APN Fort Smith Medical Center & Beineman Aesthetics
479.782.1500 | dosouthmagazine.com catherine@dosouthmagazine.com
Fort Smith Medical and Beineman Aesthetics trust Do South® Magazine to promote their business and meet their advertising needs. Each day, Tonya Beineman and her friendly staff work to make our community a healthy place to live and work. At Do South® Magazine, our goal is to promote businesses like yours, making sure our readers know what you have to offer. Call Do South® today to see how we can help grow your business through effective, targeted advertising. DDOOSSOOUUTTHHMMAAGGAAZZI N I NEE. C . COOMM
&
advertiserSPOTLIGHT
QA
TONYA BEINEMAN, APN Fort Smith Medical Center & Beineman Aesthetics 479.434.3131 fortsmithmedicalcenter.com info@fortsmithmedicalcenter.com 3811 Rogers Avenue, Fort Smith, AR 72903
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN BUSINESS?
Almost six years. WHAT EXACTLY IS AN ADVANCED PRACTICE NURSE (APN)?
Advanced Practice Registered Nurses, whether they are nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, nurse anesthetists, or nurse midwives, play a pivotal role in the future of healthcare. APRNs are often primary care providers and are at the forefront of providing preventative care to the public. I am a Board Certified FNP (Family Nurse Practitioner), and a Board Certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, which allows me to treat all ages. APRNs follow the guidelines set out by each state, and are authorized to treat acute and chronic illnesses, and must obtain a DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) certificate, which allows them to prescribe medications. WHAT SERVICES DO YOU OFFER AT FORT SMITH MEDICAL CENTER?
We offer wellness and preventative healthcare, along with mental health, and we treat acute and chronic illnesses. We do genetic
testing and have an in-house lab. We also offer bio-identical hormone replacement therapy, weight loss, and offer our patients counseling with a registered dietitian. WHAT SERVICES DO YOU OFFER AT BEINEMAN AESTHETICS?
We have the new SculpSure (FDA-approved laser for killing fat cells). Additionally, we offer SkinPen microneedling and other aesthetic treatments such as microdermabrasion, facials, chemical peels, spray tans, Botox, Dysport, Juvederm, Radiesse, Restalyne fillers, Kybella, Monat haircare, and sclerotherapy.
changing their lifestyle in order to be healthy and happy and help them regain their youth and beauty inside and out. WHAT LED YOU TO PURSUE A CAREER IN THE MEDICAL FIELD?
I’ve always enjoyed caring for others, be it physically, emotionally, or helping others feel better about themselves. In nursing, I could do all that plus much more! I knew at a young age that nursing was my calling. My aunt was an incredible nurse, and I wanted to grow up and be just like her! WHAT IS THE BEST PART OF YOUR JOB?
WHAT IS THE LATEST ADVANCE IN SKINCARE THAT YOU OFFER TO YOUR CLIENTS?
Seeing the outcome of our patients.
We have the new Skin Medica Lytera 2 and the Ha5, some of the most advanced skincare available, along with the TNS serum, which has been called “Youth in a Bottle.”
WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR INTERESTS OUTSIDE OF THE CLINIC?
WHAT ARE YOU MOST PASSIONATE ABOUT IN YOUR LINE OF WORK?
Treating the “whole person.” This means treating all illnesses, mental health, hormones, and weight loss. We educate patients on
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Reading, lake time with our family and friends, photography, interior decorating and fashion and design. WHAT IS THE BEST PIECE OF ADVICE YOU HAVE EVER RECEIVED?
Be honest, kind and always be true to yourself!
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poetry
A
Problem LINEs Amelia Haskins
I have a son, and his name is Al. He's not only my son, he's also my pal. He was my own first little boy, And he brought me lots of comfort and joy. But now he is married, with a family of his own, But he's still my little boy, and the nicest I've known. And I have a son, and his name is Ed, Who once was my own little curly head, And now he's grown up, and he's married too, But there's nothing I ask, he wouldn't do. And though soon a daddy, he expects to be, He'll always be my little boy to me. Now I have a son, and I called him Joe. He's one of the prettiest little boys I've known, But he joined the Army and went overseas, And brought home a wife and a family. And no matter how big his rank may be, He'll always be my little boy to me. Then I had a son, and I called him Don. And no nicer little boy was ever born. He did all my chores, my painting, and such, Now he's overseas, and I miss him so much. Though I get a letter most every day, He's still my little boy, even though he's away. And now I have a son, and his name is Bob. To bring him up nice, is now my big job. ‘Cause he is the last of my baby boys, And the only one left to give me comfort and joy, And though he's a genius, and smart as can be, He's just my little school boy, and a baby to me. Now I have a problem, I’ve put to test. I'm trying to decide, which one I love the best. Is it my Al, or my Ed, or my Joe, or my Don, Or my Bob, the last little boy that was born? Now each one is wonderful in his own way to me. And each one has always been, as precious as can be. And as each little boy is the other boys’ brother, I guess I love one, just as much as the other.
DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
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calendar
MAY
2
Submit your events to editors@dosouthmagazine.com
ND
Two days of fun as crowds gather for The Steel Horse Rally. Shopping, concerts, food, a parade, birds of prey exhibition, motorcycle show, and a rally down Garrison Avenue. See website for details.
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May 2 Go Red for Women Fort Smith fortsmithgored.heart.org The Fort Smith Go Red for Women event runs from 9am to 1pm. Guest speaker is Holly Hoffman, from season 21 of CBS’s Survivor: Nicaragua, and author of Your Winner Within. See website for details and pricing.
5-6
TH
From 9am-5pm, Artfest will be held in Greenwood on the walking trail behind the courthouse on the Downtown Square. Great food, fifty artists displaying painting, jewelry, woodwork, and live music.
Garden Giveaway
Twenty-five home vegetable gardens will be given away, you’ll learn about the rose garden, and at 10am, you can take a class as you walk about and discover Arkansas trees, all at The Learning Fields at Chaffee Crossing.
Day at the Derby
A Day at the Derby, a Kentucky Derby Watch Party, will be hosted by The Junior League of Fort Smith at Michael’s Mansion from 4-7:30pm. See jlfs.org for pricing.
May 5-7 Toad Suck Daze Conway toadsuck.org
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This family-friendly festival has tons of great food, games for kids, toad races, pet shows, and live music. See website for schedule.
6 May 5-6 Steel Horse Rally Fort Smith thesteelhorserally.com
Artfest
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May 6 Artfest, Greenwood Garden Giveaway, Fort Smith Day at the Derby, Fort Smith DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
May 11-14 Cirque Italia Springdale cirqueitalia.com This is the first official traveling water circus in the U.S. The stage holds 35,000 gallons of water, along with acrobatics, dance, contortion, BMX, and rollerskating. See website for details.
calendar
THETOPTENTHETOPTEN The Choctaw Nation is bringing together members of the "Tushkahomma team" and the youth players from the "Yvnnvsh Homma team" to play Traditional Stickball. From 10am2pm at the National Historic site.
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May 12-13 Seussical The Musical Van Buren csafortsmith.org See this happy musical, performed by the Community School of the Arts, at the King Opera House in downtown Van Buren. See website for details.
May 25 Garrison Keillor: Just Passing Through Fayetteville waltonartscenter.org Garrison Keillor, writer, poet, creator of A Prairie Home Companion, will be performing at the Walton Arts Center. See website for details.
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May 19-21 Old Timer’s Day Van Buren oldtownvanburen.com Come to downtown Van Buren to celebrate the fortieth year of the Old Timer’s Day Festival. Arts and crafts, a carnival, great food, live music, and entertainment. More than two hundred exhibitors.
May 29 Cowboy Poets and Steeldust Fort Smith fortsmithmuseum.org May 13 Choctaw Stickball Exhibition Games Fort Smith nps.gov
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TH
DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
Head downtown for the Old Fort Days Rodeo Parade at 10am. At noon, Cowboy Poets and Steeldust will be performing at the Fort Smith Museum of History. See website for pricing and details.
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people
MAMA TAUGHT ME HOW TO LAUGH words and image Stevie Seibert Desjarlais
WHO'S YOUR MAMA? CONTEST WINNER Connie Soso-Goines and Stevie Seibert Desjarlais
My mama taught me how
friends bowling towels; we
to laugh. I am a serious
bought mini Johnson’s baby
person, and I have been for
powder bottles; we spray
a long time. Once, when I
painted yogurt cups and
was in elementary school,
Styrofoam balls to glue into
my mom said, “Skip school,
trophies. In hindsight, that
and we’ll go to Disney-
was the most detail-oriented
land.” I responded, “No,
party I’ve ever had. I was sad
mom, I don’t want to miss
to not have her at the party
any assignments and fall
but I didn’t feel worried
behind.” In high school, if
about her because of her
she knew I had a crush on
unwavering faith in God. She
a boy, she would drive past
says she knew she had to live
his house really slow and
to see me graduate high
honk the horn as I rapidly pulled the seat lever to recline myself
school, go to college, and get married. She did all these things.
into hiding. She’s always been outgoing; I was on the debate team and stayed home to read books in my room. But we are
In the twenty years since her bone marrow transplant, my mama
both nerds at heart. I can’t say I’ve laughed harder than the
and I have done A LOT. She flew to London when I studied abroad.
time when she tried to teach me how to drive stick shift in a
She drove with me to Alaska when I moved from southern Cali-
purple Saturn. With me at the wheel, the car jerked forward so
fornia. We’ve snorkeled in Hawaii. We’ve seen the New York City
erratically that I couldn’t even see the road because of whip-
skyline. We’ve watched late night jazz shows in Kansas City. We
lash. We have similar laughs, too. When we get going really
went to Vegas for my twenty-first birthday—I won’t say what we
hard, no sound comes out at all.
did, but laughter ensued. We’ve gone on countless road trips, shopping trips, and doctor visits. She’s moved across the country,
It was more than just humor that has seen us through all the ups
become a master gardener, and earned her master’s degree. I’ve
and downs of our nearly thirty-one years together. When I was a
moved across the country as an Army spouse, and am now working
toddler she got cancer for the first time, which I don’t remember
on my doctorate. My mother’s love and faith are the foundation
too much of. Leading up to my tenth birthday, she helped me
of my own; our shared sense of humor has kept us sane under
plan my bowling alley birthday party (an idea from my American
unfathomable conditions. Steel Magnolias says laughter through
Girl magazine) but could not attend because she was receiving
tears is a favorite emotion. It’s true enough. Love you, mama.
a chemo treatment. We hand-hammered eyelets to make my
I’m not crying, not at all.
DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
garden
Words: Megan Lankford, Lead Horticulturist, Botanical Garden of the Ozarks
May in the Garden YOU CAN PLANT: THE DIRT:
The month of May is transition time in the vegetable garden. Kale, cabbage, and collard greens are near the end of their season, but some of your favorite summer vegetables are just getting started! Although the 1st of May is too early to sow squash, watermelon, and corn, by the end of May all of these and much more can be planted or sown!
Beets Beans Carrots Corn Cucumbers Eggplant
TIPS: Many a gardener loves the pride of having the first ripe tomato. However, they don’t know the importance of soil temperature. Soil temperature is a critical factor in the growth of many vegetables. If the temperature is too low, regardless of the air temperature, they simply won’t grow. It also makes them more susceptible to disease. Meaning if a tomato is put in the ground in early April, it will likely sit there and not grow until May. During this time the plant is more vulnerable to soil diseases. Additionally, seeds will not sprout if the soil temperature is too low or too high. So if you don’t have a greenhouse or high tunnel, make sure you have patience! Wait until the end of the month to plant or sow those warm season crops. DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
Leek Peppers Tomatoes Pumpkins Squash Watermelon Cover crop of Buckwheat
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entertainment
The Stranger in the Woods By Michael Finkel | Alfred A. Knopf, 191 pages | $26 review Marla Cantrell
In 1986, Christo-
made him feel sick. He wasn’t brought up that way, he said,
pher Knight was
and knew he was doing wrong.
twenty years old. He had his first job,
For twenty-seven years Chris survived this way. He did not hunt
installing home and
or fish. He never built a fire, believing the fire would call atten-
car alarms in Massachusetts. At twenty, he’d never been on
tion to his camp, and end his solitude.
a date. He loved solitude, a good book, and technology. Less than a year into his first job, driving a car one of his brothers
When he stole, he took clothing, soap, razors, food, books,
co-signed for, he quit. He slid behind the wheel and took off,
propane tanks, a radio, an old TV, and batteries that he used to
driving all the way to Florida. He ate fast food and slept in the
make the electronics work. He never befriended an animal but
cheapest motels he could find.
made a connection with a mushroom growing on a nearby tree.
The road trip was his first and last. When he’d seen whatever
In the winters, when the brutal cold descended, he kept to a
it was he’d gone to see, he turned back, ending up in Maine
schedule, sleeping a few hours, getting up to melt snow over
where he’d grown up, passing by his family’s home but not
his stove, moving to keep his blood going. And never once, he
stopping. He kept going north, driving on roads that were so
says, did he get sick.
remote they turned into trails. And then he parked his car, left the keys inside and started walking.
Chris developed a love of great literature he’d pilfered, although he’d read anything he found in the cottages. In time,
He ended up in The Jarsey, near North Pond and Little North
he became somewhat of a legend, this hermit who couldn’t be
Pond. In Maine, in the wilderness, it was easy to disappear.
found. But he also frightened those in the area, taking from
He eventually found the perfect place, hidden by a boulder he
them peace of mind along with worldly goods.
could squeeze through, with his campsite on the other side, covered by hemlocks, maples, white birches, and elms.
When the author, Michael Finkel, met Chris, he’d already committed more than 1,000 burglaries. They formed a tentative
As distant as it seemed, Chris was only a three-minute walk
connection, and Michael began to write the story of this man
from the nearest cabin, and that nearness proved invaluable.
whose world consisted of a makeshift camp, years of reflec-
Approximately every two weeks, under the cover of night, he
tion, and an idea that the abundance most of us spend our lives
stole from the weekend or summer cottages in the area, and
seeking is really just a weight around our necks.
eventually from Pine Tree Camp, a summer retreat. The act
DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
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pets
ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE, AND A DOG F
M
F
Mumphord
Lizzie
F
F
Gracie
F
Oakley
Libra
Roxanne
Sebastian County Humane Society 3800 Kelley Hwy., Fort Smith | 479.783.4395 |
| SebastianCountyHumaneSociety.org
Each month, Do SouthÂŽ donates this page to local and regional non-profit animal shelters. If you work with a shelter and would like to reserve this space, please email editors@dosouthmagazine.com. DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
18
people
Justice for
Missy Witt words Marla Cantrell imageS courtesy LaDonna Humphrey
The following account of what happened on December 1, 1994, is based on information from LaDonna Humphrey and published reports about this unsolved case.
DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
people
Thursday, December 1, 1994, began unremarkably in Fort
Her car keys were found in the parking lot, and someone took
Smith, Arkansas. At five that morning, the temperature hit the
them inside at 7:45 p.m., an act of goodwill, and yet no one
freezing mark, 32°F. At three in the afternoon, it had warmed
noticed the splatters of blood that clung to the metal.
to 63°F, the day’s high. The sun rose at 7:07 a.m., and set at 5:05 p.m. When the moon came up, it was a waning crescent,
Since Missy never entered the bowling alley, Mary Ann did
sometimes called an old moon, just one day shy of being new.
not know she’d been on the property. Mary Ann went home, and as the hours passed, began to fret, calling everyone she
Melissa “Missy” Witt spent the first part of the morning
could think of. Midnight came, turning Thursday into Friday,
with her mom, Mary Ann. She’d head to Westark Commu-
and still no word. By three in the morning, she was driving the
nity College next, where she was an honor student. And after
streets, looking frantically for her daughter. At nine o’clock,
that, to her job as a dental assistant. But before she
she reported her missing.
stepped out the door, she had a minor disagreement with her mom. Missy asked to borrow money, Mary Ann said no, and the pair went on with their day. The two were especially close. Missy was born the year Mary Ann turned forty, and by 1994, Mary Ann had been a single mom for years. They had the same good looks, the same winning smile, the same kind heart. That day, Mary Ann left a note for Missy. In it, she told her she loved her. She also said she’d be at Bowling World (she bowled on a league) in Fort Smith,
On Saturday, Missy’s friends were passing
The tip line for anyone who has any information investigators could use to solve Missy Witt’s murder is 479.221.9393. A $5000 reward has been offered for new information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the Missy Witt case.
by the time Missy read the message.
out fliers, hoping that someone somewhere knew something they did not. By the time they’d finished, they’d handed out over 6,000 pleas for information. Days later, Missy’s car was discovered in the parking lot of Bowling World, and beside the car was one of her hoop earrings, a broken hair clip, and blood stains. Missy’s story lit up the news channels. Her picture seemed to be everywhere. Worried
parents watched their children closer, assigning early curfews or not letting them out of the house at all.
At five o’clock, when Missy left work, she sat behind the wheel of her 1995 Mitsubishi Mirage and turned the key. After a few
Christmas passed, and the new year rang in as it always had, but
more tries, she gave up, waiting with a friend until a kindly soul
still no sightings. And then, on January 13, 1995, in the Ozark
from a nearby business gave her a jump, and she was on her way.
National Forest near the Turner Bend community in Franklin County, two trappers found Missy’s unclothed body in front of
There was a chill in the air, and Missy went home to ditch her
a rock that looked like a tombstone, a few yards from a moun-
uniform and put on a V-necked top and jeans. She wore gold
taintop logging trail. The site is forty-five miles from Fort Smith,
hoop earrings and a Mickey Mouse wristwatch with a brown
remote, hard to find unless you know where you’re going.
band that was all the rage in the mid-1990s. Everything she had was taken, including her watch. She must have seen her mom’s note, because authorities believe she headed next to Bowling World, arriving between
For those who loved Missy, the pain of losing her was a phys-
6:30 and 7:00 p.m., and parked in the northwest corner of the
ical thing, their grief rising like floodwaters. When Mary Ann
lot. There were no cameras there, but two witnesses would
died on March 20, 2011, at the age of seventy-five, she’d
later tell police they heard a woman screaming.
spent sixteen years, three months, and nineteen days with a broken heart. DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
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people
If Missy had lived, she’d be in her early forties. She’d probably have a family to tend to, and she’d be a dental hygienist, just as she’d planned. The thought of that ordinary life causes another wave of heartbreak. So much was lost that night in 1994, and someone knows what happened. That’s where LaDonna Humphrey, president and founder of Let’s Bring Them Home, an organization whose mission is to help find missing adults, comes in. She and her team are making a documentary about Missy called Uneven Ground: The Melissa Witt Story. They’ve hired a local production company, and have experts from across the U.S. who are helping. There’s also a Facebook page and website called “Who Killed Missy Witt?” Even though Missy isn’t missing, LaDonna knew her case needed attention. She’s now in close contact with Fort Smith Police Detective Troy Williams, who’s assigned to the case. She talks several times a day with retired captain J.C. Rider,
The Facebook page, Who
who was the lead detective on Missy’s case for years and is now a consultant for the documentary.
Killed Missy Witt, was
“J.C. still loses sleep over this case to this day,” LaDonna
created in December 2015.
solved.’ I tell them, ‘You have no idea.’ Police turned over
Since then, more than 1
says. “Overwhelmingly, we hear, ‘This case should have been everything they could. I’ve seen the case files; I know what they did. They gave it their all and then some.”
million people have visited
Since she and her team began this project a year and a half
the page. There have been
released in July, and is serving as its producer. She’s also
thousands of shares. Most posts have between 100,000 and 500,000. The page has generated several hundred tips. There is also information about the case at whokilledmissywitt.com.
ago, she’s written the script for Uneven Ground, due to be authored a book with the same title that will be available on Amazon at the same time, and interviewed more than 115 people. When they began, the team thought their work would be methodical, like piecing together a puzzle. But they’ve become emotionally involved, having good days and bad. At times, when she posts to the Facebook page, tears fall, the sorrow of what happened too much to hold back. “I go over and over the case files. Some days it feels like it was the perfect crime. And other days I feel like, No, there must be something we missed.” To find that, she’s corresponded with prison inmates, some of the worst of the worst, men she believes could be possible
DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
people
suspects, one of whom is on death row for a murder that is eerily similar. On her lunch breaks, she scrolls through sites like
LaDonna Humphrey wrote a book
Ebay, where she hopes to find Missy’s Mickey Mouse watch for
about this case titled Uneven Ground:
sale. If she finds it and the serial number matches, she may have
The Melissa Witt Story , the same name
found a thread that unravels the mystery of what happened. Beyond interviews and tangible evidence like the watch, there is hope in science. New advances in DNA testing could hold a key. LaDonna says in 2008, when the TV show, America’s Most Wanted, picked up Missy’s story, re-testing was done. Now there’s something called Touch DNA, which can analyze minute samples of DNA found at a crime scene, such as skin cells left on an object that had been touched.
as the documentary. It’s scheduled to be released in July on Amazon. The documentary, Uneven Ground: The
Melissa Witt Story , is set to be released in July on Netflix and Amazon Prime. Premieres in both the River Valley and
Which leads us back to the site in the Ozark National Forest where Missy was found. Cigarette butts were collected there, and while they may have been dropped by someone inno-
Northwest Arkansas are in the works. Follow their social media accounts for updates.
cent before the crime was committed, they could also have a connection to the case.
“It may have been someone who felt jilted by Melissa. Someone who has problems with women. Checks up on their
There’s also a recording of a phone call left for area law enforce-
women, follows them. She was a beautiful girl. She never
ment two days before Missy’s body was found. In it, a woman
really had any enemies. But something happened that they
with a strong Southern accent urges a man believed to be her
couldn’t handle, in my opinion.”
grandson, to tell police what he’d discovered. But the phone call cuts off abruptly, and the two never called back.
If the killer is one of the inmates LaDonna can't rule out, how did his path cross with an innocent girl like Missy? LaDonna
The call is critical because it’s believed the grandson moved
says it could have been as simple as a chance meeting, the
Missy’s body from behind the tombstone-shaped rock so that
kind you and I might have a dozen times a day, when someone
it would be found. Hearing from him could be crucial.
we don’t know comes to our office, passes us on the street, walks past us as we head to our car and says hello. After that,
It seems remarkable that in all this time, the killer hasn’t been
the killer could have set his sights on her.
outed. Could he be dead? LaDonna believes he is very much alive. She also has a theory about what happened, which she’s
This brings us back to the crux of who Missy was. LaDonna
quick to say is hers alone, and not law enforcement’s.
has read her last diary twice, the words sacred now, given the weight of how her life ended. “She was a kind, sweet
“I believe that Missy argued with someone she knew that
girl. The first to jump in to help someone. Very generous and
night, and someone who had a connection to the area where
loving. She loved music; she loved jewelry. She loved makeup.
her body was found. There are rumors of several people being
She was boy-crazy. She was a typical teenager. She had the
involved, and I just don’t think that’s the case. Statistics show
kindest, most pure heart. Your diary is the most intimate
us that if more than one person is involved in a crime, the
thing. That’s your true thoughts. She saw the world through
chances of solving that crime go up. It doesn’t just double, it
rose-colored glasses. She was trusting and naïve to the evil in
quadruples. Somebody always talks. After twenty-two years
this world. She was the daughter any mother would dream
and there’s nothing new coming in lead-wise, it tells me it was
of. I’ve laughed when reading her diary, and I’ve cried. The
someone she knew. We hope this project puts enough pres-
last entry was about some boys she liked, and how she was
sure on that person to confess.
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“Everybody loved her. We’ve never found anyone who had one bad thing to say about her. There were some horrific rumors, putting her character into question, that she was putting herself in harm’s way, and I can tell you that’s just not true. I’m not going to say Missy didn’t do things her mom didn’t know about; every teenager does. But it was never to the degree that was painted about her.” The documentary will serve as a call to action to anyone who might be holding onto a secret. It will also be a tribute to the sweet girl Missy was. As a mom to seven kids, LaDonna’s heart is broken by this story. But LaDonna doesn’t come to this story only as a mother. When she was in the fourth grade, living in southwest Oklahoma, she was in a bowling alley with her dad, who played on a league, just as Missy’s mom had. While her dad bowled, the man, who they later learned had already abused one girl, started a conversation with LaDonna. And when her dad went to the restroom, he tried to lure LaDonna and her sister outside. “We got all the way to the door, and my dad came out of the restroom and screamed, ‘Wait!’ The next thing I remember were people chasing that man with pool sticks. And my next memory was being in court, identifying him.” When she moved to this area a few years after, she first lived in Greenwood and became friends with kids who would later become Missy’s friends. The connections are many, and complex. LaDonna presses her fingers into her forehead, “This could have happened to anyone,” she says. “I’m just so sad Missy’s life was taken from her. We owe her justice, as a community and a state. She deserves to rest in peace. It bothers me that we’re still here, and still looking for answers.” When Uneven Ground is released on Netflix and Amazon Prime, it will reach a wide audience, and possibly someone watching will reach out, sharing something about this case that they’ve kept to themselves all these years. It could be the push they need to do the right thing, to bring justice to a girl whose life was stolen, just as it was getting started.
For additional information, visit whokilledmissywitt.com, or visit the Facebook page. If you have information, call 479.221.9393. A $5,000 reward has been offered for new information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the Missy Witt case. Uneven Ground: The Melissa Witt Story is set to be released in July 2017, as is LaDonna's book of the same name. Follow the group's social media for updates.
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community health
DO SOUTH CARES
®
May is National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month, and as part of our Do South® Cares initiative, we’re sharing information to make your life a little easier. Since many of us are dealing with seasonal allergies, we’re sharing information from the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America to get you through spring!
A FEW WAYS TO REDUCE ALLERGIC REACTIONS TO POLLEN: • Limit your outdoor activities when pollen
counts are high.
•
Keep windows closed during pollen season and use
central air conditioning with a HEPA filter attach-
ment. This applies to your home and to any vehicle.
•
Start taking allergy medicine before pollen season
begins. Most allergy medicines work best when
taken this way. This allows the medicine to prevent
your body from releasing histamine and other
chemicals that cause your symptoms.
•
Bathe and shampoo your hair daily before
going to bed.
•
Wash bedding in hot, soapy water once a week.
•
Wear sunglasses and a hat.
•
Limit close contact with pets that spend a lot of
time outdoors.
•
Change and wash clothes worn during
outdoor activities.
•
Dry your clothes in a clothes dryer, not
on an outdoor line.
Certain over-the-counter and prescription medicines may help reduce pollen allergy symptoms.
•
Antihistamines
•
Decongestants
•
Nasal corticosteroids
•
Leukotriene receptor antagonists
•
Cromolyn sodium
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health
WHAT IF MEDICATION DOESN'T WORK?
Sublingual Immunotherapy (SLIT) Sublingual Immunotherapy involves placing a tablet
Many with pollen allergy don’t get complete relief from
containing the allergen under the tongue for 1 to 2
medications. They may be candidates for immunotherapy.
minutes and then swallowing it. In 2014, the FDA
Immunotherapy is a long-term treatment that can help
approved three types of under-the-tongue tablets to treat
prevent or reduce the severity of allergic reactions. It can
grass and ragweed allergies. More are in development.
change the course of allergic disease by modifying the
You take SLIT tablets daily before and during grass or
body’s immune response to allergens.
ragweed season. This treatment offers people with these allergies a potential alternative to allergy shots.
Allergy Shots Subcutaneous Immunotherapy (SCIT) Allergy Shots - Subcutaneous Immunotherapy (SCIT) has
WHAT TO DO.
been around for more than 100 years and can provide long-lasting symptom relief. SCIT is a series of shots that
Discuss your allergy symptoms and your allergy treatment
have progressively larger amounts of allergen. Over time,
plan with your health care provider.
allergic symptoms generally improve. Many patients experience complete relief within one to three years of starting
For more information on asthma and allergies of all kinds,
SCIT. Many people experience benefits for at least several
visit www.aafa.org.
years after the shots stop.
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shop
Make Mama Proud! words Catherine Frederick imageS Catherine Frederick, Jade Graves, Rachael McGrew, and courtesy vendors
Wooden Décor, Americana Birdhouse Pillow and Tumbler
JENNIFER’S GIFT SHOP AT SPARKS HEALTH
Skincare Products by SkinMedica
FORT SMITH MEDICAL CENTER BEINEMAN AESTHETICS 479.434.3131
479.441.4221
Chateau d'Esclans Whispering Angel Rosé, Elouan Rosé, Wild Hibiscus Flowers in Syrup
Topsies All Flip, No Flop Footwear
LUTHER STEM POOLS & SPAS
SODIE’S WINE & SPIRITS 479.783.8013
DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
479.646.7772
shop
Make your mama proud this Mother’s Day! Keep it local and shop with some of our favorites. You can’t go wrong with these perfect gifts.
Hearts On Fire Illa Pendant, 18kt. Rose, Yellow or White Gold
JOHN MAYS JEWELERS
Mad Housewife Cabernet Sauvignon, Sisterhood Passionate Pinot Grigio, Marilyn Merlot, Wine Holder, Apothic Rosé.
479.452.2140
IN GOOD SPIRITS 479.434.6604
Face A Face Sunglasses
DR. STEVEN B. STILES OPTOMETRY 479.452.2020
Mother’s Day Gifts: Coupons, Candle Mug, Wooden Décor, Zipper Pouch
SUNSHINE SHOP AT MERCY FORT SMITH 479.314.6079
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diy
JUST SAY
SPAHHH... words and images Catherine Frederick
Whether you’re looking for a homemade gift for a friend, for Mother’s Day, or a special treat for yourself, you can’t go
SUGAR SCRUB
Ingredients •
1 cup sugar
•
¼ cup coconut oil
•
5-8 drops peppermint essential oil (or your favorite scent)
•
2-4 drops red food coloring
•
1 ½ pint canning jar
wrong with this spa trio! It features a sugar scrub, a body butter,
METHOD
and a relaxing foot soak. Natural ingredients make it perfect for
Melt coconut oil in microwave – about 15 seconds. Add sugar
all skin types. Pack it up in adorable half-pint jars, and it’s a gift
and stir until combined. Add food coloring, stir after each drop
set perfect for pampering the ones you love.
and repeat until you have the desired shade. Add essential oil and stir. Pack mixture into jar.
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PEPPERMINT FOOT SOAK
use Rub desired amount onto wet skin to
Ingredients
remove dead skin cells, rinse well.
•
1 cup Epsom salts
•
½ cup baking soda
•
½ cup sea salt
•
4-6 drops red food coloring
•
5 drops peppermint essential oil
•
1 ½ pint canning jar
METHOD
BODY BUTTER Ingredients •
3 oz. pure cocoa butter
•
4 oz. coconut oil
•
4 drops peppermint essential oil
•
4-6 drops red food coloring
•
1 ½ pint canning jar
In a bowl, combine Epsom salts, sea salt, and baking soda. Add essential oil and stir to combine. Add food coloring. With fork, break apart the red clumps until evenly distributed, but not completely mixed in throughout. Pack mixture into jar.
use Dissolve ¼ cup into hot water, soak feet, rinse thoroughly.
METHOD Melt cocoa butter and coconut oil in microwave, stirring every 10 seconds until combined. Place mixture in refrigerator until cool, about 5 minutes. Place in bowl, whip with mixer until fluffy. Add food coloring, stir after each drop – repeat until you have the desired shade. Add essential oil and stir to combine. Pack mixture into jar.
There are so many wonderful scents when it comes to essential oils. Have fun mixing various food colorings with the essential
use Rub desired amount onto wet skin to remove dead skin cells, rinse well.
oils you love best. Finish off the jars by adding a piece of scrapbook paper, fabric or a doily to the top of the lid along with a wrap of ribbon or twine.
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people
PRETTY BEET UP
Lessons From a Horse Named Shooter words Stoney Stamper Images courtesy April Stamper
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people
IF
you've read many of my stories, you'll quickly find that the majority of them are going to involve animals. My family's attachment to fourlegged creatures goes back several generations. My great grandfather
would tell us stories of himself as a youth, and just like my own stories, most involved an animal of some sort. Like when he was a young man working in a livery stable in Oklahoma. He didn't have enough money to buy his own horse, so he'd board other people's horses, and then at night he'd saddle up their horse and ride it all the way to Salina to go dancing. Then he'd ride it as hard as he could back to Locust Grove, some fifteen miles away, put it up, give it some feed and water, and have it waiting for the customer the next morning. Now, that's not exactly an honest thing to do, but it sure made for a good story. Another time, he caught a full-grown coyote in the wild, brought it back to the ranch and attempted to domesticate it and make it a pet. FYI, that didn't go well for my grandpa. Or for the coyote. Those are just a few of the hundreds of stories he told us as children. And even though we'd likely heard all of these stories multiple times, they were never any less entertaining, and more often than not, if you paid close attention, there was a lesson that could be learned. I've always believed that we, as humans, could learn a lot by watching animals. Sometimes, the lessons are small and simple, and other times, they can be much more profound. Last night was a good example of the latter. I had a pretty significant life lesson pounded into me, whether I wanted it, or not. Let me explain. Shooter is a two-year-old American Quarter Horse. I bought his mother from a horse farm in Wisconsin about four years ago. He is really well bred and has grown into a really nice horse. Since the moment he was born, he has been cuddled and babied and spoiled rotten. He's really less of a horse and more akin to a Labrador Retriever. He's a big pet. He's gentle and calm and will normally allow me to do anything I want to do to him without so much as a flick of his ears. He trusts me implicitly and knows that I would never hurt him. However, something happened yesterday. Something scary and traumatic. He got what is known simply as "choke." It's exactly what its name implies; he choked on beet pulp. Being the mischievous and ornery critter that he is, he broke into the feed room in the barn and got into some feed that is meant only for our girls’ show pigs. The beet pulp got lodged in his throat, and he choked. Now, choking in horses is much different than for a human. When we choke, it blocks our airways. We turn purple and lose the ability to breathe. That is not the case for horses. It only blocks their esophagus. They can breathe just fine, they just can't swallow. So while ultimately, it can cause some problems, it's not quite the death sentence for them that it is for us. Their biggest problem is that they panic. They absolutely lose their minds because they're scared. When I saw what was happening, of course, I came immediately to his assistance. My whole purpose during that ninety minutes, until the vet could get
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there, was to try to make Shooter calm, reassure him, and keep
warm water into him that cleared the blockage. The entire
him from hurting himself. He bucked, he reared, he kicked.
process took twenty minutes, but probably seemed a lot longer
His eyes were wide, white with fear, and he was soaked with
to my anxious horse.
sweat that was dripping from his body. He jerked me around like a rag doll, and since he outweighs me by 700 pounds, there
My point is that Shooter had taken a manageable problem and
was really little I could do about it. He struck out at me with
turned it into a serious situation because he panicked and over-
his front feet and connected on multiple occasions. I've got the
reacted. How many times in life can we say the same about
bruises on my elbow and shin to prove it. What he could not
ourselves? Too many times, I see people, including myself, go
realize was that the biggest danger was not the choke itself,
through difficult times, whether it be the breakup of a relation-
and it wasn't from the man standing beside him trying to help,
ship, the loss of a job, or any other number of things, and even
even though he seemed convinced that I was there to do him
though those are certainly significant circumstances, they are not
harm. The most severe danger posed to him in all of this was
circumstances that will kill us, no matter how convinced we are
himself. If Shooter was able to lie down and roll, which is what
that they will. Those problems can be overcome. We can beat
he wanted to do, then we could begin to have some real prob-
them. We just need to calm down, take a few deep breaths,
lems. He could twist a gut and colic, which is deadly for horses.
allow those around us to help, and most of the time, everything
He could get hung up on the fence next to us and break a leg.
will be all right. It's scary. It almost feels like the end of the world, but it's not. This too shall pass.
Thankfully, none of that happened. The vet arrived, stuck a tube the size of a water hose up Shooter’s nose, and pumped
Even if it's a big wad of beet pulp.
Stoney Stamper is the author of the popular parenting blog, The Daddy Diaries. He and his wife April have three daughters: Abby, Emma and Gracee. Originally from northeast Oklahoma, the Stampers now live in Tyler, Texas. For your daily dose of The Daddy Diaries, visit Stoney on Facebook or on his website, thedaddydiaries.net.
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travel
The BIG
LITTLE
Craft Show WORDS Marla Cantrell IMAGES courtesy The Little Craft Show
M
May is when things get hopping in Arkansas. Schoolchildren are finishing up the year, the weather is perfect, and dozens of festivals get underway. We love these festivals, and one of our favorites is The Little Craft Show in Springdale.
The Little Craft Show opened in 2011, the brainchild of artist Amber Perrodin, and has developed a loyal following. The makers at this event are incredible, the show is lively and fun, and the shoppers leave with unique items they wouldn’t find anywhere else.
There you’ll find more than 100 talented artists and crafters who’ve been juried in, meaning they had to apply and then be selected to participate. You’ll be able to buy an impressive selection of handmade items. These include woodworking, leather goods, artisan foods, prints and stationery, jewelry, clothing, kids' items, and plenty of other original works. There will also be food and drinks, art installations, and live music.
Even better? It’s free to attend. We gathered a snapshot of what you’ll see. Rest assured, though, there is so much more. Save the date, take your friends, or even better, ask your mom to come along. The show is on May 13, the day before Mother’s Day!
Meet these vendors and dozens more at The Little Craft Show | For more, visit thelittlecraftshow.com The Little Craft Show Saturday, May 13, 10am – 6pm | Free to Attend Shiloh Square Pavilion, 106 East Emma Avenue, Springdale DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
travel
Eloa Jane Art & Design Eloa Jane Pereira | Fayetteville, AR You know all that junk mail you get every day? Artist Eloa Jane faced the same problem. Since she wanted to recycle, she searched for ways to do it. Now, she makes this amazing art using everything from old office paper to coffee filters.
Villa Design Melissa Villadiego | Maryland Heights, MO On a whim several years ago, Melissa took a lampworking class and was hooked on working with glass. Today, she makes jewelry that combines vintage details with a modern twist by incorporating her artisan glass creations with precious stones and mixed metals.
The Little Bubble Bella Corrente | Oklahoma City, OK Bella, at thirteen years old, has been making soap since she was nine. The Little Bubble started as a homeschool project, and today she makes great products like bath bombs, bubble bars, lotions, candles and other bath treats.
Pheasant Press Sarah Ridgley | Fort Smith, AR Sarah first became interested in letterpress printing when she was researching invitations for her wedding. Today, she handprints all her work, one piece at a time, on a 1920s Chandler & Price printing press, at her Pheasant Press studio in Fort Smith.
This Loves That, and Ply Katie and Barry Abrams | Champaign, IL Katie and Barry are a husband and wife team. Katie’s specialty is purses and accessories, as well as hand painting wood jewelry. Barry, whose shop is called Ply, silkscreens artwork on paper, wood and fabric banners.
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Sister Sucrose Myra Epp | Fayetteville, AR Myra is the owner, baker and decorator at Sister Sucrose. She started making intricate cookies in her kitchen for friends and family, which grew into a custom cookie business. This stay-athome mom loves nothing better than bringing folks together with a sweet treat.
Odder Daughter Instruments Kelsey Robins | Bentonville, AR Kelsey, the creator of Odder Daughter Instruments, makes everything from whistles crafted with Arkansas walnut, to guitars and ukuleles created with recycled materials. She crafts flutes, tambourines, dulcimers, lyres, jingle bells, and more, including instruments for kids.
iDesign Terri Bittings | Springdale, AR Terri’s serving trays and old fashioned tree swings are made from decades-old barn wood. She uses old metal and leather in her one-of-a-kind trays, and the tree swings are fashioned with 3/4" manila rope and aged barn wood that will last in the elements.
CreekBaby Misty Duffy | Yellville, AR Misty started making her own skincare products when she was pregnant with her daughter. She wanted to know what she was putting on her skin, and she wanted those products to be simple, unscented and organic. A few years later, Misty started her company, CreekBaby.
The Cake Occasion Stephanie Long | Springdale, AR Stephanie is the nineteen-year-old owner of The Cake Occasion. She’s in culinary school and works nearly full-time, making her dreams come true. She loves baking, hard work, and creating treats that make people happy.
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people
MY KIDS CALL IT Words and Images Jessica Sowards
Egg Pie! DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
people
I
I clearly remember the first recipe I ever
was entirely intentional, but at some point along the way, my
cooked of my own volition. I’m not talking
life became themed around real, fresh, delicious food.
about opening boxes and mixing cans; I’m talking about cooking, the kind with real,
Anyone can cook. I really mean that. All it takes is one good
fresh food. I was seventeen, and with no
success, one meal that makes someone close their eyes at the
prompting from parents and no occasion to
first bite, and your confidence soars. You’ll be as hooked as I
warrant a special meal, I prepared a Spinach
was the very first time I made quiche. So, here are a few tips,
Florentine Quiche. I cooked it on an ordi-
from my kitchen to yours:
nary, weekday afternoon, before the days of Pinterest and an easily accessible blogosphere full of recipes. The cookbook from my grandmother’s ladies club lay open on the counter, and I followed it precisely, taking far longer than I should have for such a simple recipe. I even made the crust from scratch. I was so proud of that quiche. Proud enough that I still remember it today, all these years later. These days, with chickens in the yard and freshly made goat’s milk cheese in the fridge, a farmhouse quiche is a regular occurrence. We’ve nicknamed it “Egg Pie” because that appeals more to picky toddlers,
1. Good Tools Matter
and since there is always a full egg basket on
You wouldn’t expect to paint a masterpiece with a frayed
the counter, it is my fall-back when I don’t
paintbrush or build a structure with broken power tools. One
feel like cooking something difficult. I no
of the biggest struggles I see happening in the kitchens of the
longer reference a book for a recipe, having
self-proclaimed “bad cooks” is the use of poor cooking tools. I
long since branched off into a version all my
also see people try to become good cooks by spending an arm
own. Occasionally, though, making quiche
and a leg on pots/pans/etc. they don’t yet know how to use,
strikes up some nostalgia in my heart as I
then getting frustrated at their lack of knowledge. My advice
remember struggling to produce that special
is this: go buy a twelve-inch Lodge cast iron skillet for twenty
meal as a young woman.
dollars at Walmart and get a single, well-reviewed, chef’s knife on Amazon for about the same. If you want to really
That first foray into the world of cooking
widen your arsenal, add a cast iron Dutch Oven (Sam’s Club
sparked a love affair that has continued
sells a Tramontina version for around forty dollars) for soups
to evolve over the sixteen years that have
and braising. Now you literally have everything you need.
passed between then and now. It has developed through multiple kitchens and changed
2. Stock the Basics
just as surely as my family has. With six kids
Cooking with real food is easy. It doesn’t have to mean always
to feed and an extended family that sits at
having an elaborate plan. It just means being prepared. My
my table nightly, I’ve had a lot of opportuni-
pantry is always stocked with shelf-stable basics like chicken
ties to hone the skill of feeding people. And
broth, whole wheat noodles, rolled oats, honey, flour, and an
then, of course, there’s the farm. Mornings
array of seasonings, kosher salt, and cracked black pepper.
start before the sun, milking goats, tending
Basics like eggs, cheese, butter, onions, carrots, celery, and
the garden, gathering eggs. I don’t think it
garlic are staples. And in the freezer, I keep frozen berries,
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frozen veggies, individually bagged and frozen chicken breasts and cooked bacon. These ingredients guarantee that with no notice or prior planning, I could make muffins for breakfast, bacon and egg sandwiches for lunch, and chicken noodle soup for dinner, along with many, many other options. 3. Keep It Simple If cooking feels overwhelming, stop what you’re doing, take a breath, and go at it from a different angle. Cooking is a labor of love. Feeding your family nourishes far more than their bodies, so believing that it’s just a chore will steal your joy! Read recipes for real food. If they seem complicated, find a different recipe. We live in an age where you can literally learn to cook anything with the help of the Internet. You don’t have to cook four-course meals that take all afternoon to prepare. Just cook the things your family likes to eat.
Basic Farmhouse Quiche This recipe shines in a homemade crust, but I admit to keeping a few frozen ones on standby for unplanned meals. This recipe makes one deep dish pie and is always a crowd pleaser. • 4 large eggs
They like that blue-boxed mac and cheese? Find a recipe from
• 1 cup heavy cream
scratch and give it a try. If they don’t love it, find another one.
• ¼ cup grated parmesan
Be persistent. Enjoy yourself. And if you don’t know where
• 4-5 slices cooked bacon, broken into pieces
to start, I recommend the quiche. Or maybe it’s “Egg Pie,”
• 5 oz. shredded mozzarella
depends on who you’re feeding.
• ½ medium onion, diced and sautéed for a
few minutes until transparent (optional)
• 1 pie shell Preheat oven to 375°. Beat the eggs and cream in a bowl until well mixed and set aside. Place both cheeses, bacon pieces and onions in a pie shell and spread out evenly. Pour egg mixture over ingredients. Bake for 40 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Tip: You can put just about anything in a quiche, so try subbing the meat and shredded cheese for other combinations like deli ham and cheddar or sliced turkey breast and Monterey Jack. Just leave the base of eggs and cream the same and add the parmesan for texture. And if you choose to add veggies, make sure you quickly sauté them first to release moisture, lest you end up with a watery quiche!
Follow Jessica @thehodgepodgedarling.blogspot.com.
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taste
Words and Images Catherine Frederick
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Fresh Herb Radish Spread Makes 2 cups
Now is the perfect time of year to gather some fresh radishes and turn them into a delicious herb spread! Visit your local farmers market for the best selections if you haven’t planted your own. I am not usually a fan of radishes, although my husband loves to eat them raw, but I adore this herb spread slathered on a toasted baguette!
Ingredients:
Method:
° °
1 Tablespoon fresh dill for garnish
°
6-8 Tablespoons Crème Fraiche ¾ teaspoon ground white pepper
2 Tablespoons basil, roughly chopped
° °
1 Tablespoon fresh chives, chopped
°
Baguette, toasted and sliced (would also
2 cloves garlic, minced
be delicious with fresh pita chips)
°
1 small bunch of small to medium
° °
Zest of one small lemon
roughly chopped
° ° °
sized radishes (8-10 radishes) 2 Tablespoons flat leaf parsley,
(1) 8 oz. cream cheese, softened (I made my own) Sea salt for garnish
Wash radishes, trim and slice thin. In a small bowl, add radishes, parsley, basil, chives, and garlic. In a separate bowl, combine the lemon zest, white pepper, Crème Fraiche, and cream cheese. Stir to combine ingredients and mix until smooth and creamy. Combine the herb and cream mixtures and gently fold together. Spread onto toasted baguette slices and garnish with chopped dill and a sprinkle of sea salt.
Tip:
Prepare your own Crème Fraiche by combining 2 tablespoons buttermilk with 1 cup of heavy cream. Cover with a clean cloth in a warm, draft-free location until thick, about 12 – 16 hours or until thickened. The mixture will not spoil while on the counter; the acid in the mixture prevents spoilage. Stir and refrigerate until ready to use. Can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.
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Bananas Foster French Toast Recipe and image James Stefiuk
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BANANAS FOSTER FRENCH TOAST
46
Ingredients
Method
— 4 eggs
Preheat an oven to 200° F.
— ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, cinnamon, milk, 1 Tablespoon of the brown sugar and a pinch of salt until
— ½ cup milk
well combined. Pour half of the egg mixture into a dish — 6 Tablespoons firmly-packed dark
big enough to hold two slices of the bread. Soak two slices, turning once, for 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a
brown sugar, divided
plate. Repeat with the remaining bread and egg mixture. — Kosher salt, to taste
Gently pour any remaining egg mixture over the bread
— 4 slices of brioche or other egg bread,
until absorbed.
In a skillet over medium heat, melt 1 ½ Tablespoons of
roughly 1-inch thick
butter. Add two bread slices and cook, turning once, — 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, divided — 4 bananas, cut in half length-wise
until golden, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a wire cooling rack set over a baking sheet and keep warm in the oven. Repeat with 1 ½ Tablespoons of the butter and the
— ¼ cup dark rum
remaining bread.
— ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
In another skillet over medium-high heat, melt the remaining 3 Tablespoons of butter. Add the bananas
— 3 Tablespoons water
and cook, flip occasionally, until lightly browned, 2 — Whipped cream (optional) — Syrup (optional)
to 3 minutes. Carefully pour in the rum, then add the remaining 5 Tablespoons of brown sugar, the vanilla extract, water, and a pinch of salt. Stir to coat the bananas evenly. Simmer until the bananas are soft and the sauce is thickened, 2 to 3 minutes.
Plate French toast and top with a generous helping of bananas foster, top with whipped cream and drizzle with syrup if desired.
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Coconut Mojito image James Stefiuk
INGREDIENTS • 6 fresh mint leaves • 3 lime wedges • 1 teaspoon superfine sugar • 1 ¼ oz. white rum • ½ oz. coconut rum • 1 ¼ oz. cream of coconut • 1 cup chilled club soda • Lime, fresh mint, grated coconut (garnish) • Ice
METHOD In a mixing tin muddle 6 mint leaves, 3 lime wedges and sugar. Add white rum, coconut rum, and cream of coconut. Fill shaker with ice, and shake until chilled. Strain into highball filled with ice. Top with cold club soda and garnish with lime wedge, mint, and coconut if desired. Always drink responsibly. Never drink and drive.
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Take Me Out to the Ballgame,
y'all
words Dwain Hebda images courtesy Arkansas Travelers, Northwest Arkansas Naturals
"Baseball was, is and always will be to me the best game in the world" ~Babe Ruth DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
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I
In the cool of the Arkansas evening, the unmistakable waft of popcorn floats through the fourth-inning breeze. The tranquil park hums with casual conversation, punctuated by the snap of leather, the whistle of horsehide and the crack of hickory. Organ music provides a soundtrack for the lucky patron who’s been called to the field for a test of skill during changeover. It’s hard to get too worked up about wins and losses this early in the season when the beer is cold, and there are fireworks later. Welcome to summertime in Arkansas, whiled away in the embrace of minor league baseball. “I love big league baseball, but it's a much bigger venue, it's a bigger everything,” says Justin Cole, general manager of the Northwest Arkansas Naturals based in Rogers. “We want
Corey Toups
to have the affordable, family-friendly entertainment that reflects a lot of what the minor leagues are about. “When you work in the industry, sometimes you roll your eyes a little bit because that's all you hear, but it's true, and it has not changed, and it's something that you almost take for granted. That's the bedrock of who we are.” Minor league baseball can trace its Arkansas roots to 1895 with the formation of the Little Rock Travelers, later renamed the Arkansas Travelers. The lineage isn’t unbroken as sputtering financial woes took time to iron out, but the Travs remain one of the oldest franchises in baseball. In 2008 the state welcomed its second club, the Naturals, from Wichita, bringing baseball back to the northwest corner of the state
Samir Duenez
for the first time since the 1930s. For a state this small that’s an unusual feat; for the two squads to be in the same division is about as rare as the unassisted triple play. “There's two teams in a lot of states, but one might be in Single A and the other might be in Double A," says Rusty Meeks, assistant general manager for the Travs. "For us to both be not only in Double A in the Texas League, but in the same division is pretty neat for our fans and just baseball fans in general." Those expecting a Hatfield versus McCoy-level rivalry will be sorely disappointed, even with the teams’ head-to-head DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
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Ryan ÓHearn
records nearly square over the past two years and the Naturals
Naturals’ front office before coming home to take his dream
nipping the Travs for the division title by a single game last
job with the Little Rock club.
year. That smarts, but you’d never know it talking to the brass. “Unfortunately I'm going to say just great things about the Natu“I definitely would say it's a very friendly rivalry especially
rals,” Rusty says. “I hate to let you down, but they're tremendous
between the front offices,” Justin says. “We like to have some
people. Front office staff as nice as can be. It's just been fun.”
fun with it, we still track the standings, but I think for both teams if it doesn't favor us we don't promote it as much.”
No one’s hit the big money at the Double A level, although some of the players can see it from here. Over the years,
The professional pleasantries are genuine and a hallmark of the
both squads have seen numerous players ascend to the major
minor league game where salaries are low enough and hours
leagues. The Travs have been affiliated with a string of major
are long enough to give most front offices common ground.
league clubs during their history, this year for the first time
As a kid, Rusty was batboy for the Travs and worked in the
with the Seattle Mariners. The Naturals have been particularly
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prominent in kicking top prospects upstairs to eventually land with their MLB affiliate, the Kansas City Royals. “The Royals’ success has been just spectacular these last four or five years, and it’s neat having so many Naturals players contribute to that,” Justin says. “We had twelve former Naturals on the Royals’ twenty-five-man roster that won the World Series.” In fact, it is this level of upward mobility that keeps a true rivalry from growing its bitter legs. In the bigs, teams stay intact longer, and certain players perform in the clutch to break one fan base’s heart while thrilling another’s soul. You learn to hate the players and club that keeps sending your team home early. In the minors, the team’s ace slugger could be next to you in the grocery store line, and chances are you wouldn’t know him. And by the time he did gain some local recognition outside of die-hard baseball fans, he’s likely headed elsewhere. “The players are always trying to advance to the next level, so you just don't have the continuity with the players,” Justin explains. “We've lost in the championship the last two years to Midland [Texas] but with completely different teams on both sides each year. In theory, Midland should be a pretty good rival for us because we have not been able to beat them these last two years of that championship. As much as I want to get back there and win it, I know full well it's going to be with a newer team, and their team is going to be drastically different as well.” If anything tells the story of where the competitive relationship lies between the two Arkansas clubs, it may be the tale of the
“I would say it's getting to be more of a rivalry every year as
turnstiles as fan interest upticks when the two squads meet in
it goes on,” Rusty says. “Over the years our attendance has
a classic old school-new school showdown.
increased a little bit from when we play the Naturals.”
When the Travs roll out the red carpet, figuratively speaking, it’s
Still, there’s a lot more that unites than divides Arkansas’ two
122 years long (less a handful of seasons due to wartime and
baseball clubs. Seats are still cheap and easy to get, particu-
other complications) and edged with five Texas League cham-
larly during the week, and promotions and concessions often
pionships, the most recent coming in 2008. But the upstart
upstage the game itself, especially a 1-0 two-hitter at the
Naturals have won and won fast since arriving in Rogers. The
height of an Arkansas summer.
squad claimed the 2010 Texas League championship in just their third season in Arkansas as well as three divisional titles
Justin says Arvest Ballpark, celebrating its tenth year, is known
including the past two years back-to-back.
for its main concourse that links the vendors while providing an uninterrupted view of the action. Locals love the fireworks DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
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nights and opt for the barbecue nachos, a stadium specialty.
“If you're going to see one promotion, you’ve got to come to
Also not to be missed is the funnel dog, a hot dog dipped in
midget wrestling,” he says. “You’ve got Beautiful Bobby and
funnel cake batter, fried and dusted with powdered sugar.
Little Kato out there wrestling each other, throwing each other on a mat. It's fantastic.”
“That's in our Sweet Spot concession stand with all of our desserts, ice cream and sundaes and all that good stuff,” he says. “Not good for you, but it's good food.”
To catch the next match-up between these two teams or any game this season, call or visit:
Travs’ fans flock to Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock for Faith and Family Night which features a Christian concert after the game, and they also love a good fireworks show. Order the Philly cheesesteak, the corndog or the fried Oreos, then find your seat to bask in the sparkling evening view of the Little Rock skyline over the outfield wall. As for promotions, it’s not even close, Rusty says.
Arkansas Travelers 501.664.7559 travs.com Northwest Arkansas Naturals 479.927.4900 nwanaturals.com
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Queen Wilhelmina State Park Visit Queen Wilhelmina State Park in Mena for an “out of this world� getaway. Located on the second highest point in the state, Queen Wilhelmina offers guests dreamlike views and a sense of living in the clouds. This Arkansas state park is home to one of the newest lodges in the system. A visit to Queen Wilhelmina is a wonderful way to celebrate National Travel and Tourism Week in May.
For more information, visit queenwilhelmina.com.
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words Marla Cantrell images courtesy The Mercantile and Marla Cantrell
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Several years ago, while visiting Bartlesville, Oklahoma, my husband and I made a side trip to Pawhuska. This was during the Great Recession when towns everywhere were struggling. Pawhuska, though, seemed especially hard hit. I remember the main roads that ran through the broken heart of this Osage County town, many of its old buildings as forlorn as jilted lovers. I remember how the wind blew that day, and it carried dust across a street that seemed downtrodden enough to expect nothing better. On a recent Saturday, my husband and I returned. We’d had one of those weeks when life had had its way with us, and we were kind of hollow-eyed and weary. We’d chosen the area because my husband spent his teenage years in Bartlesville. He can drive the roads there without thinking, his brain attuned to the switches and turns, to the streets that used to take him to friends’ houses, football games, swim practices, the church haphazardly studded with giant chunks of turquoise glass. And because we were there, we returned to nearby Pawhuska, but not to check its pulse; we knew Pawhuska was fine, The Pioneer Woman had seen to that. If you don’t know The Pioneer Woman, her name is Ree Drummond. Several years ago, she started a blog, telling stories about her life in Pawhuska, on a cattle ranch with her husband and four kids. She’d share down-home recipes that called for enough butter to shame Paula Deen, post her exquisite photos, and she’d write with so much love and humor about her trials and errors that you couldn’t help but love her. What Ree’s created from that blog is the stuff of the American Dream. She now has more than four million followers, a cooking show on the Food Network, a string of books, a line of kitchenware sold at Walmart, and a general store/deli/bakery in downtown Pawhuska called The Pioneer Woman Mercantile. And that’s why we were there. As I said before, we’d had a bad week, and maybe because of that, we hadn’t done any research at all. If we had, we would have known that at the end of the first week of operation, in early November 2016, 30,000 people had shown up at the Mercantile; 12,000 of those on Saturday. To date, an estimated 900,000 visitors
Ladd Drummond
have been to the store.
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Six months later, droves have visited from across the nation, and farther still. Tour buses show up in this town of 3,500, lines form outside the entrances, with eager fans waiting in separate lines for the deli, take-out, and for the shop and bakery. Part of the allure is the building. Built in 1903, it became the Osage Mercantile Company in 1910. The Drummonds bought the 25,000-square foot building in 2012 and transformed it. Think prairie chic meets New York City loft. Chandeliers sparkle overhead, an impressive staircase winds its way to the second-floor bakery and coffee shop (there’s also an elevator), and tall windows bring in so much sunlight it’s hard not to be happy. On the walls, you’ll see photos of the Drummond family, candid shots of their life on the ranch. Although my husband and I were not seeing any of this for a while. We stood in the line for the deli for thirty minutes or so before we walked away and asked a nearby shopkeeper for recommendations. The shopkeeper was eating a burger at the
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time, sort of zealously, and he said we should try Grill 125 at 125 East Main. He was right; it was wonderful! When we returned, the line to get in the shop was much shorter. We waited fifteen minutes. But even waiting was fun. The staff had handed out umbrellas to shield us from the sun, and a greeter was roaming the crowd, making small talk. Getting inside is worth the wait. Ree has said in previous interviews that she must love every product they sell. There are beautiful dishes, purses, jewelry, toys, a section for men, clothing, housewares, and of course The Pioneer Woman books. We made our way upstairs to the bakery/coffee shop. There we waited in another line, although only for a few minutes. Standing alongside the queue was Ree’s husband, Ladd, wearing his signature cowboy hat and chatting easily with customers. Several women had their photos taken with him, and we spoke to him as well. I was holding a T-shirt I planned to buy, and he told me the purple one I’d chosen was Ree’s favorite. I noticed some of the women nearest Ladd fanning themselves, the color rising to their faces, their hands going to their hair, smoothing it in a way that indicated nerves or flirting, I don’t know which. Ladd is sort of good looking in a way that a 100-degree day is sort of warm. While we waited in line, we watched other customers who were eating in the bakery. There are big, comfortable chairs, well-worn rugs, more tall windows with gorgeous light. Most everyone had a shopping bag with one treasure or another in it, and most everyone was smiling. My husband and I got a cinnamon roll and a snickerdoodle to take with us. I was kind of non-committal about the cinnamon roll until I tasted it. It alone was good enough for the entire three-plus hour trip. When we go back, we’ll plan our trip during the week. (Note: The Merc is closed on Sunday.) We heard remarkable things about the menu, which is served six days a week, beginning at seven in the morning. Most were raving about the Chicken Fried Steak, and the Marlboro Man Sandwich. And, of course, there was much discussion about the bakery, with Ree’s Homemade Cinnamon Rolls coming out on top. DOSOUTHMAGAZINE.COM
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Come on the right day, and there’s even a chance you’ll be given a map with directions to The Lodge, where The Pioneer Woman’s cooking show is filmed. That didn’t happen to us.
The Pioneer Woman Mercantile 532 Kihekah Avenue Pawhuska, OK
But we didn’t mind. Our trip was a rainbow at the end of an extremely stormy week.
918.528.7705 themercantile.com
You can’t book reservations for the Dine-In Deli. Wait times
Deli, Bakery, & General Store Monday through Thursday — 7am to 7pm Friday and Saturday — 7am to 8pm Sunday — Closed
can vary, but tend to be shorter in the early morning and in the late afternoon. Parties of 15 or more can reserve The Dinner Experience on Monday-Thursday evenings. Email events@themercantile.com.
Holiday Hours Memorial Day — 7am to 7pm July 4th — 7am to 7pm
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Lucette used to be a “hit-the-road, Jack” kind of girl. When things got hard in a relationship, she was out the door, no turning back.
Here We Are
Together FICTION Marla Cantrell
She is thinking about this while sitting on the front porch of her house, which is tiny, but not in that new, trendy way. She had the squat, wooden house built five years ago from scraps and castoffs when things went south with a trucker named Jimbo. Jimbo was the first man to leave her. The man who ruined her streak. Back when she was in her twenties, the worst part of breaking up was moving out, loading her stuff in her Camaro that sometimes started and sometimes didn’t. Each time, after she’d ditched Clem, and then Cobb, and then Joey, she’d crawled back to her mama, a woman widowed young and so devoted to Lucette’s daddy’s memory, she’d never so much as gone out for a Coke with another man. The last time Lucette moved back home, she was carrying Jolie on her hip, her baby girl just cutting teeth. Jolie was Joey’s kid, but Joey never showed an interest. Lucette’s mama said, “You’ve got to stop this nonsense,” and she took Jolie into the kitchen and fed her chicken salad that she’d run through a blender until it was mush. The porch where Lucette is sitting has enough room for one skinny chair, a round table big enough for a glass of sweet tea and a clay pot with red silk geraniums. The yard is big enough for one tree. Inside, there’s one bedroom, a kitchen/living room combo, and a tiny bath with a sink the size of a wiener dog and a shower as thin as a supermodel and a commode that’s been running for two years straight. When Lucette’s mama died—this was six years ago—she left her house to Jolie. Lucette remembers the reading of the will in a lawyer’s office downtown. Jolie was eighteen at the time, and already she dressed like a middle-aged woman, right down to her flat, dull shoes. If Jolie’s had a man in that three-bedroom ranch since her mama passed, Lucette hasn’t heard about it. Not that she would. She and Jolie haven’t had a dozen conversations since the slick-haired lawyer had to pull them apart after Lucette ended up with only a stack of Corning Ware and her granddaddy’s oversized Bible. And now it’s another Mother’s Day. Every Mother’s Day of her life, up until the day Lucette’s mama died, they’d gone to four
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cemeteries together, putting flowers on all the family graves, scat-
There are only a few yards between where she’s standing and
tered hither and yon across two counties in Arkansas, some of the
Gary, who now holds a basket full of roses. He walks toward her
headstones so old the names had worn off.
and asks, “Are they delivering mail on Sunday now?”
After Jolie was born, she’d come along too, the three of them
Lucette crosses her arms. “I forgot to check yesterday,” she says,
making a day of it. There was something ceremonial about putting
and then she looks over her shoulder at her house. When she
flowers down for people who’d carried the glimmer of your life
turns back, her eyes are misty. “That’s not true. I was hoping my
inside them. When they’d get to her daddy’s grave, she’d drop
daughter, Jolie, had dropped off a Mother’s Day card. We don’t
to her knees and lean her head against his stone. Now, when she
exactly get along.”
remembers how he’d smelled, it is always the green grass of his grave that comes to mind, and not the motor oil that had worked
Gary rocks on his feet, pulls his ballcap off and scratches his bald
its way into his hands when he was alive.
head. “Kids,” he says. “What are you gonna do?”
Gary, the guy across the street who lives in a house made of cement
“Who are the roses for?”
blocks, is cutting red roses from the bushes beside his latticed carport. He waves with his gloved hand, and she waves back.
Gary blushes, the color in his face causing his ordinary eyes to seem bluer. He hands the basket over. “They’re for you, Lucette.”
Her mama once told her that after forty, beauty wasn’t about looks. “It’s about maintenance, Lucette,” she’d said. “Exercise,
There is a kind of generosity that undoes Lucette. Seeing someone
diet, trips to the doctor for shots that plump up this and tighten
drop food off at the Little Free Pantry is one example. Seeing a
that. The plain, if rich enough or careful enough, become Cinder-
string of cars stop to let a dog safely cross the road is another.
ella at the ball. Beauties, if poor enough or careless enough, turn
These flowers top them both.
into her ugly stepsisters.” “There must be fifty of them,” Lucette says. She’d pointed to Lucette’s bosom. “Those push-up brassieres, the high heels and high hair, it won’t be enough one day.”
“At least.”
Strange advice from a woman who, as far as Lucette knew, never
The air is sweet with roses. “Thank you,” she says, and suddenly
brushed skin against another man after her husband died.
understands how flimsy those two words sound.
Lucette, who is four years past the forty-year mark, takes a sip of
“I’d like to take some to my family’s graves,” Lucette says, “if you
iced tea, notices the fold of flesh that falls across the waistband of
don’t mind. I used to always go to the cemetery on Mother’s Day.”
her stretchy pants. She tugs her bra straps upward making everything encased rise. She says out loud, “Mama was right.”
“I’ll go get some mason jars,” Gary says.
Down the street, a raft of kids dressed for church waits for their
When he comes back, he offers to go with her, but she tells him
mama outside in their junky yard. When she reaches their mini-
this is a trip she needs to make alone.
van, the youngest girl, maybe six or seven, takes her mama’s hand and kisses it. Lucette feels like she’s swallowed a cloud of dust.
Lucette wraps tin foil around the jars, fills them with water, and sets them inside a cardboard box to keep them from shifting.
She checked the mailbox twice yesterday, hoping for a card from Jolie. She rises, walks across her yard, and looks again. A passel of
She drives the roads to the cemeteries, her body navigating the
ants is camping inside, little soldiers planning a war somewhere.
way homing pigeons do. When she gets to the last graveyard, the
Lucette slams the metal door shut. Nothing.
one where her mama and daddy are, she looks for the cedar tree
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near the spot where they lie. The stone is simple, just their names,
who hate cemeteries. All of history is here; all of what was and will
the dates of birth and death. A set of wedding rings is engraved
never be again.”
between their names, a testament to what bound them together. “I drove by your house the other day,” Lucette says. “It looks the The stone is shiny, scrubbed clean. Around it, others grow lichen
same as it used to.”
or sleep under a cover of pollen and dust. Lucette kneels down and traces the letters, something she’d seen her mama do over
“You could’ve come in if you’d wanted.”
the years. She feels electricity when she does it, or memory, something that causes her fingers to tingle.
“You ever drive by my place?”
When the flowers are in place, she lies on the wide piece of ground
“A time or two. I like the tree out front. The mimosa.”
between where her parents are and the Gilbert McIlroys, whose stone is pale pink and tall as a first-grader.
“The guy that built the house said mimosas are invasive. He wanted to cut it down.”
She’ll end up in this spot one day. And so will Jolie. The family plot. Lucette sighs, looking at the blue sky above, the clouds as white
“You never listened to a man in your life,” Jolie says and laughs.
as wedding cake. What life has torn apart, Jolie thinks, death will put back together.
A hummingbird, the deepest emerald, the darkest blue, hovers over the McIlroy monument and then whips away.
Jolie’s shadow crosses over Lucette before she sees her girl. “Getting a feel for the place?” Jolie asks.
“I never listened to anybody,” Lucette says and puts her hands behind her head.
Lucette shields her eyes and looks up at her daughter’s face. She has hair so light it looks strung through with silver. If she tried,
The air smells like cedar and roses, and smoke from a barbecue grill
even a little, she could be beautiful. “Thought I might try it out.”
the wind caught from somewhere unseen and brought this way.
“You brought roses,” Jolie says and points at the two foil-
“Makes life kind of hard, though,” Jolie says, “all that not listening
covered jars. She takes the wreath she’s brought, silk flowers
to anybody.”
that hold every color of spring, and tacks it to the ground with a V-shaped wire, just below Lucette’s roses. “Grandma loved
Lucette scoots over until her shoulder touches Jolie’s. “It does,
roses,” she says.
Jolie. I’m trying to do better.”
“Your grandpa loved horse races and old cars.”
Lying side by side, Lucette and Jolie line up perfectly. Shoulder to shoulder. Hip to hip. Ankle to ankle. Lucette notices, starts
“And you,” Jolie says. “Grandpa loved you. Grandma told me once
to say so but doesn’t believe she can explain exactly what this
that when you were sick with the flu, he stood watching you from
symmetry means.
your bedroom doorway, and you were sleeping. He said, ‘I love the very bones of her.’ It sounded awful to me, but I guess it meant
The clouds scatter, and both Lucette and Jolie close their eyes
something special because Grandma cried when she told me.”
against the sun. Lucette reaches out, takes Jolie’s hand, and Jolie lets her. Lucette can’t prove it, but she feels as if every cell, every
Lucette wipes her eyes. “My daddy was something.”
particle, all the dust that made her, is reaching out to her daughter, is saying here I am, and here you are, and here we are together.
Jolie lies down beside her mama, her white pants, clearly a size too big, suffering the green grass. “I’ve never understood people
We are finally here together.
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