HOW TO CEL EBR AT E T HE NIGH TS BEFOR E CHR IST M A S
SWA NS A-SW IMMIN’ ON M AGNESS L A K E
BUIL DING A N OZ A R K TOW N F ROM T HE GROUND UP, AG A IN
AUSTIN BARROW, President and COO of El Dorado’s Murphy Arts District p. 42
LET THERE BE LIGHT Seven Arkansans who’ve brightened up 2017
NATURALLY CURIOUS | December 2017 | VOLUME 10, NO. 4
DECEMBER 2017
ii
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
1
Arkansas Life
December FEATURES
40
“Identity is key to improving reading outcomes for children,” says Alvin Irby, one of our 2017 Arkansans of the Year. “With Barbershop Books, we’re giving boys an opportunity to interact with men that look like them— who are encouraging them to engage with reading.”
THE BRIGHT SIDE Shedding light on seven Arkansans—our fifth class of Arkansans of the Year—who’ve done their part to perk up an otherwise dreary 2017
Photo BY Kent Meister
As told to Jordan P. Hickey, Johnny Carrol Sain and Wyndham Wyeth Photography by John David Pittman
cover Photo BY JOHN DAVID PITTMAN
56 SIGNS OF THE TIMES A peek inside day-to-day student life at the Arkansas School for the Deaf, where the ordinary meets the extraordinary Words and photos by David Yerby
DECEMBER 2017
2
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
3
Arkansas Life
December VOLUME 10, NO. 4
90
82
26 Front Porch 11
FIVE THINGS FIRST
Holiday hangouts, Swan Lake, celebrating Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Garden & Gun’s compendium of (most things) Southern and a partridge in an oversized fir tree
18
BIG DAM PHOTO The
Dispatches
Venture
33
90
FROM CANEHILL New life in an old (like, old old) Northwest
Arkansas town
36
FROM LITTLE ROCK What happens when you look hard at
your own front yard
94
Table
98
81
CRAVINGS What’s on our favorite foodies’ wish lists
82
FIRST TASTE Veal osso bucco with a view at 42 Bar and
100 AFIELD Tips on getting the shot from seven local nature photographers
HOMETOWN Slowing things down in Searcy CULTURALIST A gallery hop, local shops and sweetsounding Christmas pops
sounds of silence
Life/Style 24
TASTEMAKER Cement
Table
86
THE FEED Farmer fizz and Instagram fixes
tile, Vince sneakers and the other loves of designer Jill White’s life
26
104
ONE TAKE Off the wall
She tells me about the “Holla Hers” personal alarms and “Sock It to Me” kubotans and “Junk in the Trunk” auto emergency kits.“I also sell Tupperware,” she says. page 94 -
HOW TO … give the gift
of a new hobby
29
WELLNESS Learning that happiness lies in the small stuff
DECEMBER 2017
WISH YOU WERE HERE
Getting away from it all at Leatherwood Lodge
4
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
5
Arkansas Life
Editor’s Letter
< Penelope Poppers under the lights in John David Pittman’s studio.
DEAR SANTA Please grant me these Christmas wishes That Beige still has a few pairs of those Vince sneakers Jill White’s obsessed with (page 24)
S
ometimes things just turn out the way they’re supposed to. This year’s “Arkansans of the Year” feature? It’s one of those things.
That I’ll have a date night at The Rep’s Santaland Diaries (page 12)
When we finalized the concept for the shoot with photographer John David Pittman, we had aesthetics in mind. We wanted the photos to be moody and dark, yet veiled in color—the opposite of last year’s lightand-bright, high-contrast shots. And though I sat in the studio as several of this year’s images were made, watching as the acetate-covered strobe lights flashed bright, it wasn’t until I saw the proofs together that I realized the significance of the photos we were creating. S c ro l l i n g t h ro u g h t h e thumbnails, I noticed our seven subjects seemed to glow, their faces emerging from the darkness of the background, awash in light. In each photo, the Arkansan of the Year— someone we chose because we’d been inspired by their actions, whether big or small, over the course of 2017—was cast DECEMBER 2017
That the Trader Joe’s rumors are true
That we’ll have the whitest of Christmases
in brightness, though the space around them remained shadowy, somber. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed like it had to be this way. These are the people who’ve given us a lift. Who’ve encouraged us. These are people who deserve to have a light shone on them, and all the good they’re doing for Arkansas. We may not have intended for it to happen that way, but we’re sure glad it did. It was an accident, but on purpose.
6
That my sweet little angel who’s yet to sleep through the night will be overcome by visions of dancing sugarplums
That I’ll ring in 2018 with a bottle of farmer fizz (page 87) Feedback? We’d love to hear from you! Email us at katie@arkansaslife.com, tweet us @ArkansasLife or send us some snail mail to P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, AR, 72203. Arkansas Life
#VisitArkansas
LIGHTING DISPLAYS • PARADES HOLIDAY FESTIVITIES • OVER 50 COMMUNITIES For events and brochure information, visit Arkansas.com.
Brochure available at these locations.
DECEMBER 2017
7
Arkansas Life
Ark ans a s Lif e NATURALLY CURIOUS
EDITORIAL EDITOR
KATIE BRIDGES EMMA DEVINE
CREATIVE DIRECTOR SENIOR EDITOR
JORDAN P. HICKEY WYNDHAM WYETH
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
ARSHIA KHAN
PHOTOGRAPHER COPY EDITOR
—Seth Eli Barlow
SETH ELI BARLOW KATY HENRIKSEN MARIAM MAKATSARIA JOHNNY CARROL SAIN HEATHER STEADHAM RAGAN SUTTERFIELD
—Jordan P. Hickey
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
A.C. HARALSON KENT MEISTER AARON MENKEN JOHN DAVID PITTMAN DAVID YERBY CONTRIBUTING ARTIST
NIKKI DAWES
EBBBBBFC
“My Amazon subscription EEBBFD to Maldon sea salt. I get a box every few months, just when I’m almost out. I put it on everything—pasta, meat, vegetables, anything chocolate.”
KAREN LASKEY
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
HBBBe “Long walks. Gingko leaves. Her. Each and every day, there’s more, and too much to name. Also: Lizano Salsa.”
ADVERTISING SPECIAL SECTIONS MANAGER
WENDY MILLER
DIGITAL MARKETING MANAGER
KRISTIN BROWN
ADVERTISING ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE
“Silly, low-key weddings. I married a wonderful guy and a friend of ours got ordained just to make it happen.” —Nikki Dawes
TWEEDIE MAYS
ADVERTORIAL WRITERS
SARAH DECLERK
EMILY EDMISTEN “My fiancé and our three EEEBB> LINDA GARNER-BUNCH CODY GRAVES adorable rescue pups. We ADVERTORIAL DESIGNER LEANNE HUNTER just got our first house, and I’m stoked to hang their little ADVERTISING DESIGNER WESS DANIELS stockings over the fireplace!” ADVERTISING PHOTOGRAPHER —Emily Edmisten
WILLIAM HARVEY Arkansas Life is published 12 times yearly by Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc. PUBLISHER
WALTER E. HUSSMAN JR.
PRESIDENT/GENERAL MANAGER V.P./ADVERTISING V.P./CIRCULATION
“That I live in such a beautiful EEEEFD state. I’ve traveled from coast to coast in the past year, and nothing compares to being home in Arkansas.”
LYNN HAMILTON
SCOTT STINE
LARRY GRAHAM
NICHE PUBLICATIONS DIRECTOR
STACI MILLER FRANKLIN
RETAIL ADVERTISING DIRECTOR NICHE SALES DIRECTOR
SLOANE GRELEN
MARKETING & EVENTS DIRECTOR CIRCULATION MANAGER
ASHLEY FRAZIER
AMANDA COPLEY
JOHN BURNETT
—Staci Miller Franklin
Looking back over the past year, what are you most grateful for in 2017? -
121 East Capitol Ave., Little Rock, AR 72201 501.918.4505 | www.arkansaslife.com For subscription inquiries, please call 501.918.4555 For advertising inquiries, please call 501.244.4334 Price per issue: $4.95
DECEMBER 2017
8
Arkansas Life
Contributors
HEATHER STEADHAM
JOHN DAVID PITTMAN
Central Arkansas-based writer who pens our bimonthly Hometown column (page 94)
Little Rock-based photographer who shot “Let There Be Light” (page 40)
KATY HENRIKSEN Fayetteville-based writer who wrote “Second Life” (page 33) Twitter: @helloloretta
Facebook: facebook.com/hbsteadham Any keepsakes from Canehill? Some vintage saddle-stapled historical brochures. Also: a bottle of sorghum made at the Harvest Festival.
Favorite donut and its hometown? One thousand percent the caramel apple pie donut from Hurts Donut in Fayetteville. Can’t wait till their Emergency Donut Vehicle makes it to Conway.
Did the story change during the reporting process? It did. Specifically, when I learned about how the community was poised to take off but then didn’t.
DAVID YERBY Hot Springs-based photographer who wrote and photographed “Signs of the Times” (page 56) Instagram: @davidyerbyphoto
Instagram: @jdpittman
What sort of equipment are you shooting with? Canon, since I was 15. Although if I had a Hasselblad, a prime lens and just one light, I’d be in heaven. How did the kids at Arkansas School for the Deaf respond to you being there? When they learned that I was deaf, they were very curious—especially because I’m primarily a lip-reader, not a signer.
When did you first know you wanted to do this story? Having been raised in a hearing world, it’s always been a lifelong goal of mine to document the deaf community. I can’t wait to continue it and expand the focus.
DECEMBER 2017
Best words of wisdom from the Arkansans of the Year? Mayor Jordan told me leadership isn’t hard. Just do what’s right for the people you represent.
Best detail from the cutting room floor? The actual rich history of this place. Like the Wright family murders or when Jennison’s Jayhawkers burned the community at the end of the Civil War.
Best advice for getting someone to smile? Never ever ever say the word ‘smile.’ Make them comfortable with conversation and it will come naturally.
Hometown you’d like to call your own? Does Lake Como in Italy count? If not, I just saw chipmunks playing in the fall foliage of Eureka Springs. I wouldn’t mind joining them.
So, you’ve got a smoke machine, eh? I prefer to call it an ambiance machine.
Any notable keepsakes from past hometowns? My absolute favorite is from Emma’s Museum of Junk in Jasper. It’s a cardboard 3D buffalo head I’ve hung in my classroom. My students have named it: The Bewilderbeest.
9
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
10
Arkansas Life
12 FIVE THINGS FIRST 18 BIG DAM PHOTO WHAT YOU’LL BE TALKING ABOUT THIS MONTH
FIVE THINGS FIRST
PRESENTLY… These 10 local outings will put you in the holly-jolly mood, on the quick
DECEMBER 2017
11
Arkansas Life
NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT
12.6-24
The Santaland Diaries at The Rep Something for all the Scrooges out there: a dark comedy about a “martiniswilling, foul-mouthed, Santa-denying department store elf” written by the hilarious David Sedaris. (therep.org)
12.4
Jingle Dogs Pup Parade at Garvan Woodland Gardens Every dog should have his Christmas Day—or, at the very least, the one glorious night Garvan Woodland Gardens allows man’s best friend to sniff around their 18 acres of holidaylight heaven. Caveat: short leashes only. Bonus: pictures with Santa. (garvangardens.org)
12.1-17
Mother Goose Christmas at Arkansas Arts Center Children’s Theatre 12.2
A sweet story that follows a family on an adventure through Mother Goose’s Realm of Romp and Rhyme. Dec. 8 is “Pajama Night”—one more opp to wear those matching Christmas jammies! (arkansasartscenter.org)
DECEMBER 2017
Jingle Bell Jog 5K & Reindeer Fun Run Work off those lingering Thanksgiving pounds on a festive footrace through the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks. Ugly Christmas sweaters, reindeer antlers and (duh) jingle bells are all encouraged. (bgozarks.com)
12
Arkansas Life
FIVE THINGS FIRST
12.3
Holiday Open House at Mosaic Templars Cultural Center There’ll be live music and a kiddo-friendly craft-making station, but the star of the show is sure to be “The Say It Ain’t Say’s” sweet-potato pie baking contest, inspired by Robert “Say” McIntosh’s legendary confection. (mosaictemplarscenter.com)
12.16
Caroling in the Forest at Pinnacle Mountain State Park Sing “O Tannenbaum” among the tannenbaums along the park’s Kingfisher Trail, and then warm up back at the Pinnacle Pavilion with a campfire and hot chocolate. (arkansasstateparks.com/pinnaclemountain)
Through 12.31 Through 1.3
It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play at TheatreSquared
Stewart Family Christmas Lights in Fayetteville Clark Griswold, meet your match. His name is Carlin Stewart, and this year he’s bringing his A-game: 750,000 twinkle lights, 350 inflatables and a whole heap of jolly. And a train ride. (facebook.com/ stewartfamilylights)
This fun twist on everyone’s favorite holiday flick brings Bedford Falls to the stage, care of a 1940s-esque radio show. (theatre2.org)
12.7
Food, Libations & Conversations at Capital Hotel We can’t think of anything more joyeux this Noël than a French-themed wine dinner led by one of our favorite sommeliers, Jonathan Looney. (capitalhotel.com)
12.8
13th Ever Nog-Off at Historic Arkansas Museum The holiday edition of HAM’s popular Second-Friday-Art-Night fêtes features our most favorite contest of the year: the quest for the best local ’nog. (historicarkansas.org) DECEMBER 2017
13
Arkansas Life
H Though you are welcome to try to catch a peek of the birds, remember that this is private land. Mind your manners—park only in designated areas, be respectful of the birds and the land, and for Pete’s sake, don’t litter. For more information, visit arkansas.com/lake/magness-lake/86.
The lake is owned by the Eason family, which welcomes visitors to enjoy the swans from November through early March. The handsome birds, feathered in snowy plumage accented with black masks and bills, are best viewed in the afternoons as many of the flock return from feeding on neighboring land to settle in for the night. And just so you can be informed when you catch a glimpse—and you should—here’s what you need to know about the creatures.
SNOW BIRDS The scoop on Arkansas’ other wintering waterfowl: the trumpeter swan
THEY MATE FOR LIFE ... USUALLY: Trumpeter swans have mating habits very similar to a certain species of bipedal primate. They form pair bonds somewhere around 3 to 4 years old. The pair stays together throughout the year—mating, nesting, brooding, migrating south, migrating north and then starting all over again. Not every couple makes it till death do they part, though. Some split and choose new mates, and biologists say some widowers never mate again, finishing out their days as bachelors. (Male swans are called cobs, by the way. Females are pens, and the youngins are cygnets.)
By Johnny Carrol Sain
I
t’s usually all about the ducks when it comes to waterfowl in Arkansas—the mallards, widgeons, pintails and the like who funnel through the Delta on their migration down the Mississippi Flyway. But Magness Lake, an oxbow of the Little Red River near Heber Springs, has been attracting a more graceful web-footed itinerant since three trumpeter swans arrived unexpectedly in 1991. It’s believed that those three, the first documented trumpeter swans in Arkansas since the early 1900s, arrived in the Ozarks after a winter storm blew them off course. But whatever the reason, they kept coming back. And they brought friends. In recent winters, more than 200 trumpeter swans have settled annually onto the quiet waters of the privately owned, 30-acre lake. The flock is believed to be the largest consistent flock of trumpeter swans in the South.
DECEMBER 2017
THEY’RE LIKE YOUR AUNT WHO WINTERS IN BOCA RATON: Trumpeter swans are only moderate travelers, and some even take up year-long residences in places that catch their fancy. The Magness Lake bunch are migrators, though. They arrive in autumn, leave in late winter, and they’re mostly Midwesterners from Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan. 14
Arkansas Life
CAPTURE ARKANSAS | LARRY JERIGAN
THEY’RE BIG GUYS: Though graceful as any other swan species, trumpeter swans are the moose of waterfowl. Their wingspans near 7 feet, and males average more than 26 pounds, with 30-pounders not being out of the question. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, trumpeter swans are the heaviest birds in North America. Getting that bulk airborne requires 100 yards of runway that must be covered at full gallop.
FIVE THINGS FIRST
E
lvis, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash—none of their music would’ve been possible without the pioneering work of Sister Rosetta Tharpe. The Cotton Plant-born musician who became known as “The Godmother of Rock and Roll” made waves in the ’40s and ’50s with her dynamic electricguitar skills and by infusing her gospel roots with secular styles like blues and jazz. And now, some 70 years later, The Godmother might finally take her rightful place alongside her many disciples in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Artists are deemed eligible for induction 25 years after the release of their first commercial recording. Of the 19 acts nominated this year (including the likes of Bon Jovi, LL Cool J and Radiohead), five will be inducted as the Class of 2018 based on ballots from over 900 historians, members of the music industry and artists—including every living Rock Hall inductee. Fans can weigh in too, but you better hurry! Voting closes Dec. 5. (rockhall.com)
THE GOSPEL OF ROSETTA THARPE DECEMBER 2017
15
Arkansas Life
HUMIDITY by Roy Blount Jr.
I
f fish had a literature, you wouldn’t find the word water there, and in classic Southern fiction you won’t find humidity. It’s just assumed. What you will find is sweat. Not just atmospheric sweat, but sweat as the outward and visible sign of lust, fear, oppression, shame—all the eternal verities that people try to hide. Eudora Welty: “Sweat in the airless room, in the bed, rose and seemed to weaken and unstick the newspapered walls like steam from a kettle.” Tennessee Williams: “Your husband sweats more than any man I know and now I understand why.” In William Faulkner we find sweat like blood and sweat like tears; “sweet, sharp” horse sweat and “the ammonia-reek” of mule sweat; proprietary sweat, “to bind for life them who made the cotton to the land their sweat fell on.” And in “Dry September,” a story about a lynching, unnatural sweat: “Where their bodies touched one another they seemed to sweat dryly, for no more moisture came.” Near warm water like the Gulf Stream and the Gulf of Mexico, hot air holds more water, or anyway more of the gases that are close to combining into water. Something like that. Let’s just say this: when you sweat into Southern air, it is already close to sopping. The 100-plus temperatures of, say, Arizona, may sound hot, Southerners will say, dismissively or wistfully, “but it’s that dry heat.” Some will maintain that humidity makes heat more bearable, because it brings out the sweat. But no. In Welty’s story “No Place for You, My Love,” a would-be-adulterous couple are “bathed in sweat and feeling the false coolness that brings.” What truly cools is rapid evaporation of sweat, not sweat that flows and lingers. Humidity makes sweat stick. Which works not only in literature but in music. Louis Armstrong’s brow-mopping handkerchief was as much a trademark as his smile. James Brown was not only the hardest-working but the hardestsweating man in show business. Muddy Waters paid this tribute to Howlin’ Wolf: “Some singers they’s cool … They too nice to sweat! But Howling Wolf now he works. He puts everything he’s got into his blues. And when he’s finished, man, he’s sweatin’. Feel my shirt, it’s soaked ain’t it? When Wolf finishes, his jacket’s like my shirt.” Some of the grit of early blues recordings may derive directly from humidity. When RCA Victor was in New Orleans recording Rabbit Brown, a street guitarist and singer (he would also charge to row you out into Lake Pontchartrain, serenading as he rowed), for a 1928 album, the heat and humidity shorted some microphones out and made others sizzle and hum so much, they had to be packed in ice before use. The old saying, of course, is that Southern ladies don’t sweat or even perspire, they glow. But in A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche DuBois reassures her feckless suitor (a type that in Tennessee Williams always sweats heavily), that “perspiration is healthy. If people didn’t perspire they would die in five minutes.” Think of all the Southern things connected with humidity: porches, juleps, seersucker, halter tops, the blessed sweetness of a breeze, levees, powder, oppressive closeness, rot, the expression “freshen up,” crawfish, mosquitoes, fever, high ceilings, and heat that thickens, that casts a sheen, that comes in waves, that picks colors out of the air like a prism. Humidity humanizes the air, drawing out pheromones, bacteria, semidigested gravy, bacteria, gossip—the funk of what people breathe of each other. Today air-conditioning drastically limits the impact of humidity. So we’re all more comfortable. And what we get in the way of cutting-edge culture is Sweating Bullets, a book about the invention of PowerPoint.
A IS FOR ... OH, WAIT. Getting a read on Garden & Gun’s new Southern tome
I
t has to be said: To read S is for Southern, an exhaustive compendium
of Southern culture recently published by Garden & Gun, is to be left lacking a concrete sense of oneself—to flounder and waver, identity shaken and gone out with the tide. Because if the discerning reader pages through, she will find no mention of Arkansas. Which is, in a word, kinda odd. Although our fair state has been almost entirely excluded—that is, with the exception of an entry on Ozarks and King Biscuit Time—there is, no doubt, a great deal to enjoy. Here, one our favorite writers, Roy Blount Jr., pens a missive on humidity. Which, for the record, we definitely have. —jph DECEMBER 2017
Reprinted from S is for Southern (Harper Wave 2017) 16
Arkansas Life
FIVE THINGS FIRST
ILLUSTRATION BY NIKKI DAWES
40 feet: The height of this year’s tree
DECEMBER 2017
FIR REAL
15: The number of gallons of water a 40-foot tree will initially go through each day
How the biggest tree downtown Little Rock’s ever seen measures up
25-30: The number of trees harvested each year by Jones Forest Products
s of this moment, it hasn’t arrived. At the corner of Main Street and Capitol Avenue, orange fencing lines the perimeter of the jackhammered brick lot rendered to rubble. A large black cylinder, like a charred smokestack, rises 5 feet from the ground, hollow. Soon, though, there will be a tree—the largest downtown Little Rock has ever seen. A white fir tweezed from the high altitudes of the south Oregon woods via cables and helicopter, its weight marked in the neighborhood of 4,200 pounds. After being trussed up in early November and trucked down to Arkansas, it’ll be capped off with a glass topper from artist James Hayes and in place by Thanksgiving. P.S.: If you happen to see Chris Tanner, the owner of Samantha’s Tap Room, be sure to tell him thanks. After all, the idea behind the tree is largely his doing, this gift to us all. —jph
A
2,500-6,500 pounds: The weight range of trees harvested
Editor’s note: Originally, the tree was going to be a 57-footer weighing in at 6,500 pounds; however, after that tree was vandalized—someone evidently used it for target practice with a shotgun just days before it was due to be shipped to Arkansas—the folks at Jones Forest Products scrambled and found this year’s replacement.
19: The number of pieces— twists, curls and spikes—that make up the glass topper
17
90 feet: The height of the largest tree they’ve had in recent memory (10 years ago, delivered to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom) 48 feet: The length of the flatbed trailer used to transport trees across the country (After they’re harvested, the trees are then trussed tight with a baler, which helps transport them.) $38,000: The cost of the tree, lights and topper, secured by the Downtown Partnership through private donors
27 pounds: The weight of the topper Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
18
Arkansas Life
BIG DAM PHOTO
THE SOUND OF SILENCE Photography by Aaron Menken
Later a horn would sound and the dam would open and the waters would rise. But in this moment, on the White River, below Beaver Dam, there was quiet. Or something like it. There were three of them that morning. They walked down from the truck to fish. They didn’t speak much. Instead of their voices, there were the sounds of rocks sluicing through the sand, clacking against one another. There was the calm of low waters flowing, somewhere off in the middle distance, obscured by the fog. Later, after they’d cast their lines, there was silence and then the occasional churn of water filling the emptiness—the fins of a trout splashing violently in the frigid water, the plashing echoing off the bluffs, the hoots of two friends who wished the catch was theirs. That morning, sound carried across the rock banks but didn’t echo. When they left, there were no words, but there was a great deal to be said about silence, and the ways in which it was broken. —jph DECEMBER 2017
19
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
20
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
21
Arkansas Life
2018 SHOW
JANUARY 14, 2018 STATEHOUSE CONVENTION CENTER 12:30 P.M. ï&#x161;º 5 P.M. | LITTLE ROCK VIB (Very Important Bride) Tickets - $50. (Online only & tickets are limited)
General Tickets $10 in advance online; $15 at the door
V.I.B. Package Private mixer with show sponsors on Saturday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m. at Albert Pike Masonic Center Newly-designed t-shirts and canvas bags Early entry into the show on Sunday, Jan. 14 at 11:30 a.m. Reserved seating at all main stage events CONTESTS
125+ VENDORS
FASHION
s p o n s o re d by
ANGIE DAVIS www.arkansasbridalcommunity.com
TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
DECEMBER 2017
22
Arkansas Life
LIVING WELL IN THE NATURAL STATE
24 TASTEMAKER 26 HOW TO 29 WELLNESS
TASTEMAKER
THE BOLD & THE BEAUTIFUL Cement tile, graphic wallpaper and other tricks we learned from our new style crush, Jill White by katie bridges
DECEMBER 2017
23
Arkansas Life
TASTEMAKER
BLACK AND JILL WHITE We’ll have whatever this Little Rock-based interior designer’s having By Katie Bridges Photography By Arshia Khan
h To see how Jill’s style carries over to the rooms she designs, follow her blog at jillwhitedesigns.com (or her Instagram, @jillwhitedesigns).
“I
literally dressed like Kurt Cobain in high school: a white v-neck tee, hole-y jeans, combat boots. Wait … ” Jill White says over coffee, suddenly taking stock of what she’s wearing. “HOLD. ON. I have that same outfit on!” And she does, or at least something like it. Skinny jeans that bare her knees, black lace-up boots, a gray tee, a black leather biker jacket. Her blonde hair is swept up in a loose, I-woke-up-like-this braid, and there’s definitely a smudge to her eyeliner. Kurt Cobain? Not so much. But there is some 90s grunge in there—at least a chic, minimalist, monochromatic take on it, with a bit of devil-may-care thrown in for good measure. That’s also a pretty good way to describe the rooms Jill’s designed since branching out on her own with Jill White Designs three years ago. Take a scroll through her Instagram, and you’ll see whitewashed walls, bold cement tile, edgy wallpaper, glam lighting. (Instagram, BTW, has been the source of much of her success, she says—the way most folks, even far-away folks, find and hire her.) You’ll see plenty of black and white. And you’ll also get a pretty good sense of the sort of approachable, affable, uber-stylish person she is. The kind you ask, Where’d you get those boots?!, and, like, really need to know the answer, even though there’s nothing remotely Kurt Cobain about you. DECEMBER 2017
24
Arkansas Life
1.
JILL’S JAMS
3.
A few things this stylesetter can’t do without
EBBBD
1. COFFEE TABLE BOOK “I have two copies of Erin Gates’ Elements of Style in my house. Is that weird?” (elementsofstyleblog.com) 2. FRAME DENIM “Skinny jeans, by Frame. With holes. Add leather jacket, tee, sneakers.” (frame.com) 3. LIP GLOSS “Always in my purse? Lip gloss. Not like one tube—like an obscene number. I just counted seven! This one by Nars is a fave—it’s called ‘Turkish Delight.’” (nars.com)
4.
4. WALLPAPER “I love ever ything Lindsay Cowles does. The type of art I like is abstract, and that’s what her wallpaper is. It’s very graphic. I love to put it in dining rooms, on a headboard wall or in the powder room.” (lindsaycowles.com)
2.
6.
5. VINCE ‘VARIN’ SNEAKERS “I have two pairs and I wear them almost ever yday. It’s stupid. Beige was having a sale one day, and I was like, Better stock up!” (beigelr.com)
5.
6. STATEMENT LIGHTING “People always ask me, What should I spend money on? Good art, good millwork, good lighting. And the Kelly Wearstler Halcyon series? Slay me.” (kellywearstler.com)
7.
7. LEATHER JACKETS “Me and leather jackets: It’s a problem. There’s one by Mackage that I love, and one from Free People with a hoodie.” (mackage.com)
8.
8. WHITE WALLS “I like a blank canvas—I like to paint everything white. Architecture, ar twork, cool millwork—that’s what you should notice, not a red wall. I like Snowbound by Sherwin Williams.” (sherwin-williams.com)
10.
10. “MAGIC” SERUM “My friend who works for the company tells me it’s magic, and I believe it.” (skinmedica.com)
9. DECEMBER 2017
9. CEMENT TILE “It’s expensive, so you’ve got to use it thoughtfully—one wall in your kitchen, a bathroom floor—but I love the impact it makes. I really like anything black and white by Clé Tile.” (cletile.com)
25
Arkansas Life
FOR YOUR COUSIN, WHO IS … RATHER DRAMATIC: Classes at The Rep, where students of all ages can dabble in musical theatre, acting, theatre dance, tap dance, improv and voice-over acting. The winter session begins Feb. 5, and though details are still being wrapped up as of this writing, more info will be available ASAP at therep.org/ education.
HOW TO
THE GIFT THAT REALLY KEEPS ON GIVING Forget the Jelly of the Month Club—this year, wrap up the gift of a new hobby, care of these local workshops and classes
FOR YOUR BESTIE, WHO’S NOTORIOUSLY INDECISIVE:
By Katie Bridges Photography By Arshia Khan
A bestie date night at the Arkansas Arts Center’s Open House “Make and Takes” night on Jan. 4, where she can dip her toes into the various courses offered at the Museum School: ceramics, jewelry-making, painting, printmaking and the like. ($20 for non-members, $15 for members; arkansasartscenter. org/adult-classes)
FOR YOUR SISTER, WHO ALWAYS DREAMED OF BEING SUGARPLUM FAIRY: A Ballet Arkansas five-class card, which gives your aspiring twinkle toes access to five “open classes” at BA’s Main Street Studios. On offer: Stretch & Strengthen, Beginning Ballet, Intermediate/Advanced Ballet and Gentlemen’s Ballet, all taught by BA dancers and artistic staff. (Five classes, $85; single classes, $20; monthly unlimited, $250; balletarkansas.org)
FOR, UM, YOURSELF:
FOR YOUR DAD, WHO KNOWS HIS MERLOTS FROM HIS MERITAGES:
A wreath class on Dec. 19, 20 or 21 at Fayetteville’s adorable Garden Living, where you’ll learn techniques for working with evergreen and seasonal berries, and get pointers on composition and design. ($65; shopgardenliving.com)
A Wine & Spirit Education Trust course at The Wine Center in Little Rock, wherein he’ll learn the finer points of food pairings and associated lingo (high tannins, low acid, “like a newly opened can of tennis balls,” etc.). With enough, ahem, practice, he might even get a certificate that’ll put him on the path to sommelieresque status. ($325; thewinecenter.com)
DECEMBER 2017
26
Arkansas Life
HOW TO
FOR YOUR NEPHEW, WHO GOT ALL THE CREATIVE GENES: A class with watercolor expert Leana Fischer of Fayetteville’s May We Fly studio, who’s just as approachable as the whimsical art she creates. In the new year, Leana’s offering both pop-up workshops and four-week series devoted to foundational watercolor techniques. (Individual workshops, $35 each; four-week series, $120; maywefly.com)
DECEMBER 2017
27
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
28
Arkansas Life
WELLNESS
A LESSON IN GRATITUDE
GIVING THANKS Journaling every day might not be everybody’s cup of gratitude tea. Here are three other exercises for folks who need a little help looking on the bright side
Taking a moment to slow down and appreciate the little things By Mariam Makatsaria
GRATITUDE LETTERS AND VISITS Think of someone who had a significant impact on your life—a co-worker who helped you learn the ropes, a high school friend who was loyal to you even when you were morbidly uncool, a teacher who changed how you felt about math. Write them a letter expressing your thanks, schedule a tête-à-tête with the recipient and read the letter out loud. Not only does this kind of interaction amplify your positive emotions, it strengthens your bond and gives the recipient all the warm fuzzies.
SAVORING WALKS Here’s a less dramatic exercise that can be done in solitude, and that’s just as straightforward as it seems. Take a 20-minute stroll and savor your surroundings—the sights, the smells, the sounds. Avoid the urge to Instagram. In fact, just leave your phone behind, if you can. Instead, take the time to explore, notice and reflect on the positive things you stumble across.
GRATITUDE JARS
A
few weeks ago, I sat at my desk, engaged in a staring contest with a vertical line on a blank Word document. Although the text cursor was on a stupendous losing streak, blinking every second, I kept playing with lackluster effort for about 30 minutes. Then I gave up. To be honest, I was feeling particularly uninspired about this month’s topic: gratitude. After a tumultuous year punctuated by unpleasant life events, my “Thank You(s)” to the universe have been somewhat halfhearted or even nonexistent. A day and several attempts at originality later, I knew I had to rely on someone or something other than myself for this piece. DECEMBER 2017
While perusing internet studies linking thankfulness to happiness, decreased anxiety and depression, a dip in headaches and cardiac stress, I thought, with some skepticism: Really? So I reached out to Dr. Erick Messias, associate dean for faculty affairs and associate professor of psychiatry at 29
Place a vessel—a mason jar, maybe, or just something that allows you to see its contents— somewhere in plain sight. Jot down the rest of “I’m thankful because…” on a slip of paper, fold it up and stash it away in your jar daily. Watching the jar slowly fill up is a satisfying visual reminder of your blessings. You can even designate a jar for the entire family and read your notes of appreciation at the end of the year—or just whenever you need a boost of positivity. Arkansas Life
“Go small and go short. If you start collecting the small stuff on a regular basis, that’s going to help you have a more balanced view of your life.” UAMS, who, back in September, gave a talk about happiness and research in positive psychology. He was quick to note that gratitude is not just an emotion, but also an activity that can be changed and modified. “The human brain is biased in the way it thinks,” he told me over the phone. “The first thing to do is to recognize that the way you feel is going to color the way you think. When you realize that, you can make specific decisions on trying to use your thinking to affect your mood.” Instead of focusing on the year as a whole, which will bring the most traumatic and grim incidents to the forefront of the brain and subsequently alter the way you feel, Dr. Messias recommended savoring the small wins and jotting them down as part of a daily gratitude exercise. “I would say, go small and go short,” he said. “If you start collecting the small stuff on a regular basis, that’s going to help you have a more balanced view of your life.” Later that day, when I plopped down on the couch to get started on my gratitude homework, I heard the sound of my dog’s nails clicking against the floor as she sprinted toward me, her floppy ears and curly pompadour bouncing and bobbing. She curled up into a donut against my thigh, and looked up at me, with a combination of vague sweetness and hunger in her eyes. That! I’m grateful for that, I thought as my fingers started flying across the keyboard. As I typed, I was grateful for my laptop, DECEMBER 2017
30
Arkansas Life
WELLNESS
which had survived a full-to-the-brimcoffee spill a few days before. That evening, after my fiance had grilled a thick, tender tri-tip to perfection, I was thankful for the meal that had made its way into my belly. For the next couple of days, I stuck with my plan, making note of mundane little things I was grateful for. I was grateful for coffee—for good coffee. Nice neighbors who didn’t mind me borrowing the steamer for the third time that week. (Oh, and magical, wrinklebanishing steamers!) That perfect stroll to the grocery store on a just-chilly-enough day under a dull, mid-morning sun. That rare moment when the internet stars aligned and Skype delivered a crystal-clear image of my grandmother from halfway across the world. My grandmother’s mini lectures on life, bookended by one too many “I love you(s).” Christmas lights at the mall. Avocados. An (almost) traffic-free drive. I realized, in just a week, that I was noticing simple, small triumphs throughout the day that had previously gone unacknowledged. In the evenings, when I wrote them down, I recalled those moments, and, as Dr. Messias had predicted, they flooded me with positive emotions (and a hankering for grilled steak). I didn’t achieve a profound state of well-being or maximum personal happiness in a mere week, but I did notice a significant switcheroo in attitude. In other words, I stopped being a complete grouch. I went small and short, and shortly after wrapping up the week, I dug out a small, blank notebook I’d never used and placed it on my nightstand. Every night, I now scribble my tiny moments of gratitude by hand—and sometimes, I even let them claim a whole page.
ATTORNEYS
2018 Know an attorney who deserves special recognition? Nominate your favorite in Arkansas Life’s
Top Attorneys Contest. CAST YOUR VOTE:
arkansaslife.com/attorneys Look for the results in the March issue of Arkansas Life. The entry deadline is Dec. 27, 2017. DECEMBER 2017
31
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
32
Arkansas Life
DISPATCHES
a $1 Cane Hill coffee mug. That wasn’t always the case. In 1827, Canehill became the first settlement in Washington County when a group of Cumberland Presbyterians, originally from Tennessee, grew tired of the flooding in Little Rock where they’d first settled. (The name of the community is typically written as one word, Canehill; the nonprofit is written as two words, Cane Hill.) After making their way northwest, they discovered fertile land, where clear springs folded into roly-poly hills reminiscent of their Tennessee home. In October 1834, the settlers opened Cane Hill School, which became, by an act of the Arkansas General Assembly, Cane Hill Collegiate Institute in 1850. (In December 1852, it was chartered as Cane Hill College.) “They weren’t just subsisting,” Lawrence says of the settlers. “These guys were building nice houses. Education was a priority. Religion was a priority. They established a really first-rate community. This wasn’t just, We’re here and squatting. They were here to stay, and were doing first-class things.” Despite a list of notable firsts—the state’s first public school and first library among them—and a 1.5-mile walking trail that includes 16 sites on the National Register of Historic Places, which the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program took on in the 1980s, the rich history was largely forgotten. Because modern exchanges through commerce never found a footing in Canehill— the community leaders fought railroad expansion—and the college couldn’t compete with the free tuition offered at the Arkansas Industrial University in nearby Fayetteville, the community was
DISPATCH FROM CANEHILL
Second Life Long a shadow of its former self, the Northwest Arkansas community of Canehill is taking shape—again By Katy Henriksen
PHOTOS COURTESY OF HISTORIC CANE HILL
T
here’s virtually nothing to buy in Canehill, Arkansas, populated by an estimated 200 souls, according to the locals. This unincorporated community along a slowly meandering stretch of two-lane a mere 20 miles southwest of Fayetteville somehow managed to escape suburban subdivisions and strip malls. “There are literally are no businesses here,” explains 61-year-old Lawrence McElroy, Historic Cane Hill’s recently hired full-time museum director. “There’s not a restaurant, a gas station. There’s nothing. This is the closest thing to a business right here.” Right here means the lobby of Historic Cane Hill’s Museum, formerly the Shaker-Yates Grocery and one-time community gathering place. Just about the only thing available for purchase is DECEMBER 2017
33
Arkansas Life
“If the railroad had come through here there’d probably be an entirely different place. We’d have lost the story.” -
as well as the exact color of the Greek Revival cottage, which he discovered by looking in every crevice of the structure, finally coming across a fleck of mustard yellow under a portico. But as we stand on the porch of the A. R. Carroll Drugstore, Historic Cane Hill’s first restoration project, completed in 2014—“I think we would have lost it within five years,” he says—it’s his passion for the community that is on full display. At 35, this native of nearby Lincoln is younger than most area residents by at least a few decades, but the board recruited him because they wanted a local in charge. Plus, his background in archaeology—he’d just finished his dissertation at the University of Tennessee Knoxville—and personal connection were a great fit. Funding for the nonprofit can be traced to an oil executive, Tim Leach, who grew up in the area before becoming CFO and president of Concho. His father, Jerry Leach, who calls the nearby community of Dutch Hills home, serves as director of the board. What began as a $1.4 million restoration project for the 1886 iteration of Cane Hill College—the original institution burned down to the ground from suspected arson in 1885—is now a project with hopes to at once breathe life into and preserve entirely a distinct community in the Boston Mountains. Since its formation, the organization has invested about $4.5 million into doing so. “All those old structures are still here because they didn’t get bought out and bulldozed and something new put in its place. They’re still here. If the railroad had come through here there’d probably be an entirely different place. We’d have lost the story.” That’s Lawrence’s opinion, as well as Bobby’s, who thinks that, had the railroad come through, these 16 sites on the National Register of Historic Places would have been supplanted by subdivisions. “The Cumberland Presbyterians were very progressive on the education front but very conservative on other fronts,” explains Bobby regarding why the community fought the expansion of the Ozark and Cherokee Central branch of the St. Louis–San Francisco Railway at the turn of the century. These teetotalers believed the train would bring along vices of gambling, drinking and prostitution. The tracks were laid, instead, in nearby Lincoln, now known as the apple town even though the Arkansas apple industry began in Canehill. Unlike traditional downtown revitalization efforts that seek to attract entrepreneurs to open restaurants, bars and shops, this attempt is different. There’s no plan to bring businesses or hip restaurants in. The idea is to preserve the rich cultural history and put these historic buildings to use. The restored Cane Hill College, for example, includes state-ofthe-arts audio-visual components in hopes that the building will be rented out for conferences. The renovation of the Greek Revival two-story building includes amenities like a bathroom with huge mirrors and swiveling chairs that would be ideal for bridal parties. The idea for an artist colony is being tossed around. With the average age of a Canehill resident between 70 and 80, Bobby actively recruits folks, such as Lawrence, so that the actual community doesn’t completely die out. Those who remain seem excited that such painstaking efforts are being made to preserve
saved almost the way an ancient ant is preserved in amber resin. But more on that later. “It’s such a well-kept secret,” Lawrence says of Canehill, his slate-blue eyes sparkling as he recounts learning about the place and what compelled him to relocate from Little Rock. “I had never heard about it. I had no idea what was here.” Stars aligned in 2015 when he struck up a conversation with Historic Cane Hill’s executive director Bobby Braly at a Preserve Arkansas event in Hot Springs. Originally begun as an initiative to restore Cane Hill College (the project was completed this May), the nonprofit Historic Cane Hill was incorporated as a 501(c)3 in 2013, and, under Bobby’s direction and drive, its focus expanded to an ambitious community-wide preservation effort. A priority of Bobby’s was to improve Historic Cane Hill’s museum, which is something Lawrence knew a thing or two about. Lawrence received a master of arts in museum studies degree from Johns Hopkins University in 2013, though he’d previously spent 30 years working in echocardiography to support his family. He’d always identified as an artist. He began oil painting lessons at age 12, describes his painting as figurative realism and has a bio on the Arkansas Arts Registry. Because of his interest in history, Lawrence also consulted rural museums as a hobby, something he did for Bobby under no obligation or expectation. Not long after sending in a massive point-by-point document outlining his thoughts for improvements on the museum, he got a phone call from Bobby, offering him a job as a curator of the museum, a historic home to live in and even an artist studio. “He gave us the grand tour, drove us all over the place, showed us all the buildings,” Lawrence says. “I was sold.”
B
obby extends the grand tour to me on a scorching July day. “It’s a nice walk,” he says, showing me to his decadently airconditioned Chevy Tahoe, “but it’s really hot today.” We begin at the ruins of the Methodist Manse, winding up the hill to the cemetery, stopping by the newly renovated Cane Hill College building before coasting down a dirt road where we end the tour right next door to the museum. Although the entire guided jaunt lasts just over an hour, it feels as though time has stopped. During the course of the tour, it becomes clear that Bobby’s knowledge of Canehill is virtually encyclopedic. He makes note of the mortar formula used to lay bricks for the Methodist Manse,
DECEMBER 2017
34
Arkansas Life
DISPATCHES
their heritage. “We’ve got some ideas to try and get some young, fresh new minds in here,” says Lawrence. “I’m not a young guy,” he adds with a laugh, “but that’s kind of why I’m here. They want some people who are professionals who are interested in history who understand the significance of this place.”
they invite a friend up to perform traditional clogging. There’s face-painting and funnel cakes and attire ranging from khakis and polos to a T-shirt emblazoned with “Jesus. Everything.” Someone is cradling a soft white rabbit as though it’s a teacup dog. Although much of the crowd are strangers, I notice a number of fellow Fayettevillians I know, like Abigale Rongey, a 21-year-old political science major studying at the University of Arkansas, who came to hear music headliner John Moreland. Although a Northwest Arkansas native, she hadn’t heard of Canehill until a recent drive to nearby Lincoln Lake with her boyfriend, who had pointed out the “Old Main type” building of the restored Cane Hill College. “It feels like you go back in time,” Abigale says. “It has so much rich history, and it’s right in our backyard.”
I
t’s a rainy day in late September for the 31st annual Cane Hill Harvest Festival. Staged in a large field near Cane Hill College, the perimeter is lined by concession stands and local booths. In the far corner there’s a covered area where sorghum is made on the spot, from the initial pressing of cane stalks to the purchasing of still-warm bottles. Lawrence is chatting with visitors checking out a painting competition that he’s judging inside Cane Hill College. I say hello to Bobby, who’s serving as a point person, coordinating when musicians go on stage. A large tent shelters the music stage and audience, which becomes necessary as rain begins pouring down. The oldtime band Ozark Highballers—banjo, fiddle, guitar and vocals—are on stage, and
DECEMBER 2017
Katy Henriksen is the classical music host and an arts producer for KUAF 91.3 NPR station in her hometown of Fayetteville, which she’s returned to after adventures in both New York City and Berlin. She files music and cultural journalism widely, frequently for the music site Bandcamp Daily and The Creative Independent. 35
Arkansas Life
of the flowers’ petals refracted the light in varied wavelengths. Before the flowers faded with the first freezes of fall, my daughters, ages 2 and 5, made a habit of offering flowers to departing guests, pulling at the petals to pour the colorful mix over their heads or our heads, or the black hairy body of our dog. I worried at first about the girls’ generosity with the blooms, but it seemed only to have a pruning effect—the plant grew more and dominated our small yard. More than simply an object of play and beauty, as the seasons have passed, this plant has become a miniature menagerie for us, playing host to birds and butterflies and insects of all kinds. There was a female ruby-throated hummingbird that would visit the shrub every morning through the summer, dipping into the small clusters of flowers. She seemed to be a shimmer from a parallel world, the speed of her wings a hint of some fold in space-time. When she was spotted, there was always a rush to the window, each appearance a moment of common awe. Of all the animals that made the lantana home—toads, slugs, hatchling kingsnakes—the butterflies came in the greatest abundance and variety. Large and small, they arrived as soon as we could feel the radiant light of the sun on our skin, uncurling their proboscises to dip into the colorful sugar lures of the flowers. In the constant stream of visitors, the flower became a school for our seeing. When I was around 10, I began learning to identify birds at
DISPATCH FROM LITTLE ROCK
Home Grown In which our writer gets into the thicket of things in his own front yard By Ragan Sutterfield | Illustration by nikki dawes
W
hen we moved into our house in the late spring, there was a large shrubby flower, orange and pink and purple, just off the north side of the porch. I didn’t know its name—my botany has always been rudimentary—but friends and neighbors told me it was a lantana, a cultivated species, but also a native one in these parts. Over the summer, ours grew huge, spilling into the yard, standing over 3 feet high and 6 feet across. It was the head turner of our yard, the place where our attention was drawn as the bursting multitudes DECEMBER 2017
36
Arkansas Life
DISPATCHES
And from that space, I have been opened to a whole ecology happening in my yard, the life cycle of a butterfly that reminds me of how much more must be going on here, how much more is happening than I could ever know in a lifetime. a bird feeder. It was from there that my knowledge grew, and I began to explore the birds that were farther afield, my skills growing and coupling with what became an obsession. Now the lantana is serving this same purpose—a place that gathers the butterflies of my neighborhood so I can begin to learn their names before going to see the rarer breeds, those that don’t visit urban flowering shrubs. I have been joined in this classroom by my 5-year-old daughter, who can now identify nearly as many butterflies as I can, correctly pointing them out to her astonished mother— “Look, Momma, a Gulf fritillary!” Given that Lillian can identify all of the My Little Pony characters in silhouette, I suspected she’d be more than capable of learning her butterflies. Watching and identifying them have become activities we share. Of all the species we’ve identified in our yard—fiery skippers, common buckeyes, checkered skippers, painted ladies, hackberry emperors and other common quarries—the most frequent visitor has been the bright-orange Gulf fritillary, a common sight in the Southeastern United States. Though I’ve lived in its range most of my life, the first time I noticed the butterfly was this past summer. I was birding with my friend Bill Shepherd around the flooded fields of a wildlife refuge, looking for the shorebirds that migrate through here. Bill is 80 and has been an avid naturalist all of his life. He knows birds, trees, plants and butterflies, as well as interesting bits DECEMBER 2017
about German etymology and the proper pronunciation of bayou (which follows the rules of old French). While we watched black-necked stilts bobbing along on the mud, Bill spotted a few Gulf fritillaries chasing each other over the ditches of the wildlife refuge. They are an orange butterfly, easily mistaken, by anyone not paying attention, for a monarch. Slightly brighter than those of their cousins, the tops of their wings are speckled with black dots rather than bold veining lines. On the underside of their hind wings, they have large silver white dots like rain on a windshield. With a few good looks, I began to see them everywhere flying through the neighborhood, half a dozen of them in my front yard at any given time. Bill told me that with all of the Gulf fritillaries in my yard, there must be passion flower nearby, the larval plant for their caterpillars. As I said, I don’t know my plants well, so Bill brought some leaves and fruit over for me to see, suggesting that I plant some. As I went to place some seeds in my front garden beds, I realized that we already had it growing everywhere around the house, two species, in fact: purple passion flower and yellow passion flower. They run along the side of my house, creep through untended garden beds and trellis up the shrubs in my backyard. In the late summer and fall, the vines fruit with dangling globes that turn from green to purple. They are edible, I’m told, but the berry tastes like grass, a seedy chlorophyll— 37
A COOKBOOK FEATURING RECIPES & STORIES FROM ARKANSAS' INNOVATIVE KITCHENS
themodernarkansastable.com 501.399.3684
Arkansas Life
DISPATCHES
nothing I’d want to snack on. The name of the flower comes from 16th-century Spanish missionaries who used it to tell the story of Christ’s passion, like St. Patrick using a shamrock to explain the mysteries of the Trinity to the Irish. Shortly after discovering the passion flower vines, my daughters and I found a strange caterpillar, orange with black spikes, crawling across the door of our basement. It looked more suited to a kinky dungeon than a domestic backyard, but an internet image search quickly confirmed my suspicions—it was a Gulf fritillary caterpillar, no doubt headed for the passion flower vine nearby. One morning, I went to start the faucet to water our cool-season vegetable garden
I now see every passing shrub of holly, every towering oak, as an opening to the very world in which I live but have not even begun to recognize. -
to warm, I saw what looked like a strange butterfly settled on the straw. As I came near to it, I realized it was actually two Gulf fritillaries, hind wings folded together as a kind of cover to the coitus beneath. Again, my daughters joined me, close down by the ground, not sure of the mechanics but understanding that these butterflies were making more. Wendell Berry once wrote that “the world cannot be discovered by a journey of miles, no matter how long, but only by a spiritual journey, a journey of one inch, very arduous and humbling and joyful, by which we arrive at the ground at our own feet, and learn to be at home.” I’ve been on this journey here, going down rather than out. One many-petaled plant has become a focal point that has opened up my seeing. And from that space, I have been opened to a whole ecology happening in my yard, the life cycle of a butterfly that reminds me of how much more must be going on here, how much more is happening than I could ever know in a lifetime. By giving my attention to this plant and following its multitude of blooms, the tangled strands of its branches, I have found myself engaged in a kind of prayer. It is not the kind of prayer that comes with words, but rather it is a prayer with an icon— an image, a point of focus that opens my vision to the miraculous world beyond the mundane. By looking at the lantana and all the fluttering realities around it, I have not simply observed something had my vision transformed. I now see every passing shrub of holly, every towering oak, as an opening to the very world in which I live but have not even begun to recognize. What life lives in and on and from this tree? What eggs are laid among its branches? Whose bodies feed the roots? I do not yet have the eyes to see it all or the understanding to realize what I’m seeing, but I will sit and look, waiting for the image to give way to the reality beyond it.
and saw, just beneath the eave of the house, a Gulf fritillary that had emerged from its chrysalis. Its body dripped with liquid, the cracked shell of its transformation hanging above it. My daughters came and squatted beside me, watching it wait to join the fray. That same morning, as the day began
Ragan Sutterfield is a writer and Episcopal priest in Little Rock. His work has appeared in a variety of magazines from the Oxford American to Men’s Journal. His most recent book is Wendell Berry and the Given Life. Ragan enjoys discovering and cultivating the beauty of the world with his wife, Emily, and daughters, Lily and Lucia.
DECEMBER 2017
38
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
39
Arkansas Life
T B R I S I JESSICA OLSON
ALVIN IRBY
MAYOR LIONELD JORDAN
PENELOPE POPPERS
AUSTIN BARROW DECEMBER 2017
40
Arkansas Life
H E G H T D E
JONATHAN CROSSLEY
Looking back, reflecting on 2017, it’s tempting to dwell on the dark spots. But here’s the thing: It doesn’t have to be like that. Because if you look more closely—say, closer to home—you’ll see we’re surrounded by brightness, by people who dedicate themselves daily to lifting us up, not bringing us down. And these seven Arkansans? They’re proof that there’s light at the end of the tunnel
ANNETTE DOVE
PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN DAVID PITTMAN DECEMBER 2017
41
Arkansas Life
This month at the Murphy Arts District: Shanghai Circus, The Muses, Erica Campbell, Phil Vasser & Kellie Pickler, and Home Free: A Country Christmas. Visit eldomad.com for tickets.
DECEMBER 2017
42
Arkansas Life
AUSTIN BARROW President and COO of El Dorado’s Murphy Arts District
ON BEING AN AGENT OF CHANGE: El Dorado went
through a terrible economic downturn in the early 2000s, lost about 10,000 citizens and several big employers left. The city was left in a lurch. They had a few things going to stop the bleeding before I got here, but they hadn’t addressed quality of life. That’s what this effort is all about—changing the entertainment and cultural atmosphere in this area of the state. El Dorado, through the benefit of having some large companies still here, has always been a bit of an oasis. It made perfect sense for us to be the ones to invest in an arts and entertainment district. ON CONFIDENCE AND ASSERTIVENESS: There’s
probably not a problem that I can’t figure out. I might not have the answer, but I’ll go around and ask questions until I find it. Now, there have been many times that I’ve doubted my abilities, but what I lean back on is that I take a lot of time for myself, for thought and prayer, some time to let my head wrap around an idea. And the best advice I got when I first came here is that sometimes you’ve got to know that what you’re doing is right and just put down your head and go to work.
DECEMBER 2017
Y
ON PERFORMING ARTS IN THE RURAL SOUTH: Every
ou may not think of El Dorado as a hotbed for the performing arts. But you’d be wrong. This is largely due to the efforts of visionary Austin Barrow, a native son who returned home to help create what we now know as the Murphy Arts District, which opened to much fanfare this September. Acting on the premise that performing arts are salve to the community soul as well as a plank in the platform for economic growth, Austin works to celebrate Southern storytelling and musical talent in big-city-style venues that have brought blighted downtown buildings back to life.
movie you see with a Southerner in it, most of the time we have a tough time talking, we’re barefoot and we’re missing our two front teeth. But the best musicians are Southern. The best storytellers are Southern. We just have a way with words and a way with storytelling that the world really likes, and it’s something that we don’t hold a light on. ON WHAT ART BRINGS TO A COMMUNITY: I would say
it brings a cultural sense of the outside, of the other. It broadens the horizons. It introduces the uncomfortable, and it can also introduce levity and humor. It can change a person. A great concert, an amazing play can put a bit of the magical in life experience. I think it improves the quality of life. It makes you a more well-rounded and happier person. It makes you a kinder, a brighter human being. —As told to Johnny Carrol Sain
43
Arkansas Life
The Marshallese Education Initiative in Springdale frequently offers courses on Marshallese language and culture. For more info, visit mei.ngo.
DECEMBER 2017
44
Arkansas Life
JESSICA OLSON P.E. Teacher and Coach at Springdale’s Sonora Middle School
A
ON TEACHING MARSHALLESE STUDENTS AS A FORMER MARSHALLESE STUDENT: The Marshallese community is kind
fter the Compact of Free Association with the U.S. was signed in 1986, many Marshallese settled in the Springdale area as transfers from Tyson Foods facilities in the Marshall Islands. Now with more than 4,300 members, Northwest Arkansas is home to one of the largest Marshallese communities in the U.S. Jessica Olson and her family left the Marshall Islands and arrived in Northwest Arkansas in 2001 when Jessica was in the second grade. Now she is the first teacher of Marshallese descent in the Springdale School District, the district she attended as a student. Though she did not set out to be a leader, Jessica understands and embraces her role-model position for minority students.
DECEMBER 2017
of separate from the rest of the community here, so I want to be that person that the Marshallese kids look up to. The main thing that I’m trying to do is show them that they don’t have to stop at the high school level—they can go to college. They don’t think they can afford it, but they don’t know about grants and loans and stuff like that. I want to show them that I did it, and they can, too. ON ADAPTING TO A NEW CULTURE: Marshallese culture
and American culture are completely different. The culture in the Marshall Islands is historically a male-dominated culture, though they recently elected a woman as president. Most women in the Marshall Islands stay home and do the cooking and cleaning, and the men get out and work. My mom is from the Marshall Islands, but my dad is from Wisconsin, so we were pretty Americanized when we moved here. I think they knew that we were going to move to the States so they were preparing us for that.
ON BEING A RELUCTANT TRAILBLAZER: My mom was a teacher in the Marshall Islands, and my dad retired from education, but I didn’t want to get into education. I wanted to do my own thing. And then I started working in an after-school program, actually, it was at the school I teach at now. The student population was mostly Hispanic and Marshallese, and I really enjoyed working with the kids. I didn’t set out to be the first Marshallese teacher; I didn’t even know that I was the first Marshallese teacher until they told me. ON INSTILLING CONFIDENCE IN A KID: I coach seventh and eighth-grade basketball, and confidence is really something the Marshallese girls on my team lack. They don’t believe in themselves. Their expectations are low, and I don’t know where it really comes from. I know many of their parents work a lot, sometimes the kids don’t see their parents for more than an hour every day, so I try to be a positive in their lives. We’ve talked about the importance of confidence in basketball and in life, and I encourage them, I tell them they can do more. Coaching isn’t just about basketball. It’s important to help them become better people. —As told to Johnny Carrol Sain
45
Arkansas Life
To learn more supporting the school-integration movement, visit teachusallfilm.org.
DECEMBER 2017
46
Arkansas Life
W
ON CORE VALUES: We coach, and we have discussions around our core values as a school. Our core values are pretty simple, and everybody knows them: family, leadership, empowerment, progress and student-centered education. If we make any decisions at this school, and they don’t align with those five core values, then we’re making the wrong decision. We know it. Adults know it. And kids know it. And that is what’s been the catalyst for the change that we’ve seen here. ON BECOMING AN ADVOCATE: I was thinking about my father, who failed one grade level and
then, when he was in high school, was pulled out of school to help his father pay the bills. My mother struggled academically in school, and I think about all the reasons why that was. Then I think about what made me successful and the support that I had there, but still how tough it was to navigate being the first in my family to go to college. Then I think about all the kids I taught in Palestine, Arkansas. They need an advocate. They need somebody to stand in the gap of hopelessness and bear witness to that, and have a backbone strong enough to advocate and fight for what’s right.
ON MEETING PEOPLE WHERE THEY ARE: We do the work of teaching reading, teaching writing,
teaching math, and that’s vital and changes the trajectory for students, because when they achieve at a higher level, they have access to different resources. That is certainly part of it. But for me—and this is my leadership philosophy—if you’re not willing to meet people where they are and provide them with transparent relationships and support, then you’re missing the mark on what it means to be human.
ON MOVING THE NEEDLE: I think if we just kick the can down the road, and we just let the status quo evolve over the next 10, 15, 20 years, it’s not going to look that much different than it does now. Well, I’ll be 30 next year. I’ve got a long time to help move the needle. It’s time for me to put my money where my mouth is and fight. Like. Hell. To make sure that all of us receive a high-quality education, that all of us have access to a better future and a better tomorrow, so that the American dream that I was able to experience can be accessible to more and more and more and more people. We act like the American dream is dead. It’s not. But we are killing it with our divisiveness, and it’s time to call a spade a spade and quit it.
hen he speaks, there’s a passion in Jonathan Crossley’s voice that could move even the most complacent to action. It’s a passion that hasn’t gone unnoticed— it’s why he was named the 2014 Arkansas Teacher of the Year, the youngest educator to hold the honor, at the age of 26. It’s why, the following year, he was brought on as the “turnaround principal” for Baseline Academy, a reconstituted elementary school that was previously the lowest performing in Little Rock, where he hired and trained 40 new teachers in two months. It’s why the work he’s doing at Baseline was recently featured in the Netflix documentary Teach Us All about the fight against racial and socioeconomic segregation plaguing educational institutions across the nation. It’s why he recently announced his candidacy for a seat in the Arkansas House of Representatives. But if you ask Jonathan, he’s just getting started.
ON WHAT’S CHANGED SINCE TEACH US ALL WAS RELEASED: There’s been a little bit more exposure, I would say—people emailing, people calling. But for me, what has changed has been … nothing. We come to work every single day to do the work that we said we were going to do. And if we were doing any of it dependent on a film crew being here, we’re not really doing the work. Is it hard? Yes. Is it worthwhile? Yes. So what’s the next step? Let’s figure it out together. —As told to Wyndham Wyeth
JONATHAN CROSSLEY Principal at Little Rock’s Baseline Academy
DECEMBER 2017
47
Arkansas Life
ANNETTE DOVE Founder and Chief Executive Director of Pine Bluff’s TOPPS, Inc.
S
ON DEFINING SUCCESS: Success, for me, is when I see these young people that might not have had an opportunity to achieve. When you see these young people graduate college or working or their lives have changed, you can’t put a dollar amount on that. When a young person tells you “Mrs. Dove, I’d probably be in jail right now,” there’s no way to describe that feeling. I’m a servant. I’m supposed to help people. And I’ve been blessed. I appreciate people recognizing me, I get tickled when people say, Aren’t you the one that was on the da-da-da?, and I say, Yeah, but that’s not why I do what I do.
he’s a hugger. This is the defining characteristic of Annette Dove, and it says everything about her. Along with her late husband, Annette founded Targeting Our People’s Priorities with Service (TOPPS) as a nurturing place for disadvantaged children in the Pine Bluff area. Over 250 children and teenagers are now enrolled in the program and 23 college-graduated TOPPS students are still learning as mentors-intraining. Annette’s work has garnered attention across the nation—most notably a piece by The New York Times’ Nicholas Kristof, and an interview by one Chelsea Clinton— but her focus remains on the life success of “her kids” here at home.
DECEMBER 2017
ON RESHAPING A COMMUNITY: If we’re not there to support those kids, if we don’t show those kids something different, then we can’t change our community. If we can say, Let me show you something different—it doesn’t have to be violence, it doesn’t have to be drugs —and guide them to other places and experiences, things can change. And you never know when one of these kids will lead the community to something different just because they were exposed to something different. We teach the kids to give back. ON OVERCOMING DIFFICULTIES: My faith is what I operate on.
I wrote a little book called Birthing the Vision, and I can’t even stand to read it because I can’t believe some of the things that happened to me. But I know that with my faith I was able to overcome a lot of things.
ON THE POWER OF A HUG: I believe people know when you are for real, and what comes from your heart reaches their heart. When you embrace a person, you can determine what’s in their heart right then. When I embrace my children, I’m letting them know I’m connecting to their heart. We’re connecting. If I can’t educate you on everything, I at least can teach you to have compassion. It’s letting someone know you really care. I just get a thrill from connecting with people. —As told to Johnny Carrol Sain
48
Arkansas Life
Support TOPPSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; programming by signing up to volunteer or by making a donation at toppsinc.org.
DECEMBER 2017
49
Arkansas Life
MAYOR LIONELD JORDAN
ON BEING A SERVANT: Service is what I know. It’s who I am. I
have a set of core beliefs that I’ve brought into this office and tried to establish it through the staff and into the citizenry: an open door, an open mind and an open heart. I believe in a partnership-based government where we’re all part owners no matter the color of our skin, or our religious belief or who we love. I believe everyone needs to participate, speak your mind, let your thoughts be known. I want to hear from people. Sometimes people agree with what you’re doing and sometimes they won’t, but that’s why you’re a public servant. Ultimately the people are your boss. You need to know what your boss is thinking.
ON MANAGING DYNAMIC GROWTH: It’s not whether
you’re going to grow but how you grow. I break it down to strong infrastructure. First you have your physical infrastructure. For the city, that’s trails, sidewalks, roads, bridges and such. We also believe in a strong digital infrastructure, broadband and strong social media. And then the third is the social infrastructure, social justice, equality and inclusion. I come from a building background, so I’m asking how we’re going to build these infrastructures.
Mayor of Fayetteville
T
ON LEADERSHIP BEYOND HERE: We’re planning this city for 2050. Our Energy Action Plan lines up our buildings and our transportation with our goal to have the city off of fossil fuels by then. The plan lines up with the Paris Climate Agreement, and climate change is an important issue to me. So when the mayor of Chicago wanted to know if anyone wanted climate change information that he got before it was deleted from the EPA’s website, I said we wanted it. We’ve got it on the city’s website. I just did what I thought was right.
hird-term Fayetteville Mayor Lioneld Jordan has proven to be a municipal maestro in managing one of the fastest growing cities in the nation. His forwardthinking philosophies on infrastructure, energy efficiency and inclusiveness within the community have Fayetteville positioned as an example for other cities today and decades from now. A Northwest Arkansas native, born in Fayetteville and raised in Madison County, Mayor Jordan worked for the University of Arkansas for 27 years on staff for the facilities management department and served two terms on the Fayetteville City Council, where he never missed a council meeting or vote.
DECEMBER 2017
ON LEADERSHIP BEYOND NOW: Even if you don’t believe in
climate change, solar and wind power is coming. We need to be prepared for that. We’re trying to establish something not just for us, but for our children and our children’s children. We need to lay the foundation for our future not only in our city, but in our nation and in the world. Right now, at this moment in time, we need to work on this. We need to do it for our children. —As told to Johnny Carrol Sain
50
Arkansas Life
In February, Fayetteville landed at No. 5 on U.S. News & World Report of Best Places to Live.
DECEMBER 2017
51
Arkansas Life
Learn more about Alvinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Barbershop Books initiative by following his blog at barbershopbooks. com.
DECEMBER 2017
52
Arkansas Life
ALVIN IRBY Founder and Chief Reading Inspirer of Barbershop Books
S
ON GETTING KIDS TO LOVE READING: Identity is key to improving reading outcomes for children. We have to inspire kids to read when it’s not required. They’re not reading at home, they not reading for fun, so what we need to do is create experiences that make kids fall in love with reading. Part of that has to do with relevant reading models, like with Barbershop Books we’re giving boys an opportunity to interact with men that look like them and who are encouraging them to engage with reading.
tand-up comedian, former kindergarten teacher, public speaker, author, social entrepreneur, education innovator—Alvin Irby wears a lot of hats. He wears them here in his native Little Rock, at home in New York City, at conferences, at elementary schools, pretty much all over the place. But his primary focus is to inspire a love of reading in children. With this purpose in mind, Alvin founded the awardwinning Barbershop Books, a literacy program aimed at black males aged 4 to 8 that creates child-friendly reading spaces at barbershops across the country.
ON CULTIVATING YOUR LEADERSHIP ABILITIES: When I was at Hall High School in Little Rock, I created a reading incentive program called “It Takes Two.” Seeing an idea I had become real and inspire other people to get involved, I would say that that kind of early success paved the path to leadership for me. And I’ve always been a little different. I’ve been crocheting since I was seven—my crochet game is crazy. From an early age, I’ve been able to appreciate who I am and what I do well. People thought it was strange that I crocheted, but because I was good at it, people respected it and many wanted to do it. This was molding me to step out as leader later on. Experiences like that made me not afraid to start an organization from scratch. ON SIMILARITIES BETWEEN STAND-UP AND TEACHING:
Stand-up comedy requires a high level of cultural competency. As a comedian, you need to be able to translate what you want an audience to know into communication and an experience that people will find relevant and engaging. The same is true of the best teachers. They find interesting and creative ways to make learning fun. I think that has been one of the biggest gifts that comedy has given to me is a deeper understanding of how cultural competency informs teaching and learning.
Portrait by Kent Meister
ON THE IMPORTANCE OF LAUGHTER: A sense of humor has been essential for navigating life’s many challenges and successes. In the work that I do as a keynote speaker, I’ve definitely found humor to be a useful engagement tool. Discussing challenging topics and touchy issues is difficult but humor can help make people more receptive to difficult material. And after a stressful week, it’s always a big stress reliever for me when I can get on stage and make people laugh. —As told to Johnny Carrol Sain
DECEMBER 2017
53
Arkansas Life
PENELOPE POPPERS Founder and Executive Director of Little Rock’s Lucie’s Place
A
t the drop-in center Lucie’s Place on Spring Street in Little Rock, the doors open at 9 a.m., and the doors close at 5 p.m. Beyond that, the days vary wildly, as founder Penelope Poppers says. Speaking from her cell phone on a Tuesday afternoon in late October, she explains her day has been devoted to designing holiday cards with a volunteer. In part. Also on her mind: the new home that will provide eight beds for homeless LGBT youth, and everything they need to do to prepare for the winter months, when they see a sharp rise in the number of youth seeking their help. (This year, they’re on track to help a little over 70.) For the past five years, she’s been the face of the organization, driving them to the DMV, helping them fill out job applications, providing them a support system when everything they’ve relied upon has fallen away. But she’s quick to point out there are other people at Lucie’s Place, too. They all provide a home.
DECEMBER 2017
ON WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE: When I first started Lucie’s
Place in 2012, I sort of had this idea that, Oh, yeah, we’re going to know we’re successful in the work we’re doing because we would see X, Y and Z. But what we’ve realized over the past five or six years is that success looks very different for each person. For someone, success might be going back to college, but for another person, success might be getting their driver’s license.
ON THE RADICAL ACT OF ACCEPTANCE AND NORMALCY:
Sitting down and playing Scrabble or Monopoly with someone is just as valid as sitting down and chatting with them about some traumatic experience that happened. Because what we’re doing here is developing relationships with people society has pretty much entirely forgotten about. So, what seems like a simple act of playing Scrabble or Monopoly is really this sort of this radical thing. Because we’re just sitting, hanging out with them.
ON ALLOWING KIDS TO BE THEMSELVES: For some people,
they just want to come and hang out because they can be who they want to be here, and we don’t judge them and we don’t tell them they’re going to go to hell, or we don’t do the million other horrible other things that people do to them out in the regular world. This is the one place they can come and just be themselves. So, whatever that looks like for them, we believe that’s valid. And we support that.
people. Five years ago, that was not happening anywhere in the state. Before Lucie’s Place, that population existed, but no one knew about it, no one talked about it, but I just came in and I sort of forced every person to have that conversation. ON THE NEED FOR LUCIE’S PLACE: I think this is the time
for the organization to be an organization, and not just be a project of Penelope—which is what it was for the first couple years. And that’s what we’re here for: to offer whatever support we need to offer, so that our friends and members can one day not need Lucie’s Place—one day, not need any other organization. That’s our goal. —As told to Jordan P. Hickey
ON STARTING THE CONVERSATION: I don’t pat myself on the back very much, but one of the things that I am willing to really say that I did a good job at is really forcing this community to have a conversation around homelessness: how homelessness disproportionately affects LGBT people—specifically, young
54
Arkansas Life
On the Lucieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Place Christmas list: 31-day bus passes, $30 AT&T Go Phone cards and items from their Amazon wish list. Visit luciesplace.org for more info.
DECEMBER 2017
55
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
56
Arkansas Life
In July 2016, the Hot Springs-based photographer David Yerby reached out to the magazine with an idea: Born profoundly deaf, raised mostly in the hearing world, he wanted to capture what life was like for young people at the Arkansas School for the Deafâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;to illustrate for a hearing readership the studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; day-to-day. Off and on for much of the past year, David chronicled the lives of two ASD students. As for what he found: Well, it pretty well goes without saying
DECEMBER 2017
Words and Photos by David Yerby
57
Arkansas Life
Shannon Varner arrives at her lunch table, surrounded by classmates at the Arkansas School for the Deaf’s cafeteria, she’s immediately greeted by a chorus of waving hands.
Shannon Varner laughs as her classmate Ryan Salandy, dared by another student, chugs a bottle of ketchup during lunch.
Shannon responds with a single hand gesture, acknowledging their presence as she takes her seat. She doesn’t hear the common sounds that occur in a cafeteria—the clinking of silverware, trays being dropped, chairs scraping across the floor tiles—but she feels the presence of her fellow students, who grab one another’s attention by waving arms or tapping shoulders. It’s so different from what I remember. Standing in the cafeteria, watching as Shannon settles down at the table and her peers converse, their young hands fluttering, I’m transported back nearly 20 years. I remember what it was like to be her age. I DECEMBER 2017
58
remember what it was like to be the only deaf student in the entire Camden Fairview School District until my senior year. I only saw lips moving, little hand interaction, absolutely no sounds other than vibrations from lockers slamming, books falling on the floor or the pounding of feet as students ran by me. I remember what it was like to live in a world where there were no interpreters, no note-taking, no cellphones—where, in effect, the main channels of communication were closed to me. Born profoundly deaf, I was completely raised among people who were hearing. I learned how to read at an age younger than my peers. I started speech Arkansas Life
Student managers watch the pre-game warm-ups during the homecoming game against the Oklahoma School for the Deaf in October 2016. Teams fielded by deaf schools consist of eight players on an 80-yard field (compared with hearing teams’ 11 players on a 100-yard field).
There, there are no extra steps. There, the students experience what my hearing classmates would do on a daily basis, only with more vibrance and emotion. In the cafeteria, I watch as a friend of Shannon’s, accepting a dare, lifts a bottle of ketchup to his lips and proceeds to chug it. The table breaks into fits of laughter. Around the same time, I see Shaq’ke Robinson enter the room after making his way back to ASD after an off-campus welding class. He’s an imposing figure, the big man on campus, and he greets his football and basketball buddies by fist-pounding the sign-language equivalent of “What’s up?” with one hand as he sits down. While Shannon and Shaq’ke have much in common—being deaf, having the same classes, being in the same grade—their upbringings stand in stark contrast. Shannon lost her hearing at a young age, but because her parents are both deaf and on the faculty at ASD, she was already fluent in sign language and the deaf culture. For his part, Shaq’ke—like an estimated 90 to 95 percent of deaf children—was born to hearing parents. But those differences tend to melt away when the students are on campus. And what’s more—as I saw at homecoming this past fall, when generations of students, children, parents and grandparents returned to their former stomping grounds—those relationships go well beyond the years they spend at ASD. Although a great deal has changed over the years, with technology like text messages and FaceTime changing how people both deaf and hearing alike communicate, access to the hearing world is still largely limited to the deaf. What the hearing world doesn’t know, from my personal experience, is that deaf people are perfectly capable of accomplishing the same tasks and goals and achievements. Deaf people like Shannon, Shaq’ke and me keep fond memories of the accomplishments we make, on our own, within the hearing world. Those experiences are often the most important we have. Off and on, over the course of the year, I spent time with Shannon and Shaq’ke, following them around the ASD cafeteria, hallways and classrooms, and went to an occasional football and basketball game. During the many hours I spent watching their interactions with friends, their hands expressing the beautiful dialogue of sign language, there were so many instances when I found myself breaking into a smile. They are just your normal, average teenagers who have a bright outlook for their future. They function like any other average person in the world, though they are far from it. They’re not special. They’re extraordinary.
therapy when I was 2. My parents were adamant that I learn how to function in the hearing world at a young age, despite doctors and professionals telling them that I would never develop properly or even learn how to speak. I often had to add extra steps to keep apace with my hearing peers. When completing a task, I’d anticipate my next step, or guess what my classmates and teachers would say before they had a chance to open their mouths. That is to say nothing of the challenge I faced when it came to teaching others how to communicate with me in a way that made them comfortable. What I found at the Arkansas School for the Deaf, however, was different:
We keep fond memories of the accomplishments we make, on our own, within the hearing world. Those experiences are often the most important we have.
DECEMBER 2017
59
Arkansas Life
RIGHT: Shannon discusses
her plans to integrate video into the student newspaper with Dr. Gretchen Cobb, her journalism and English teacher. Now a senior, she plans to study psychology at Gallaudet University, a college for the deaf. BELOW: Ryan Salandy works with Shaq’ke Robinson on an assignment in their English class. Group work is an especially common sight at ASD, allowing students plenty of opportunities for interaction and engagement.
Students who live on campus
Year the school was founded in Clarksville, making it the oldest school for the deaf west of the Mississippi. (It’s been located in Little Rock since 1867.)
Students who graduated last year
Amount raised for ASD’s technology fund since the annual Silent Sunday event began 28 years ago
Arkansas General Assembly Act, approved on July 17, 1868, which made the school a state institution
Arkansas counties (yep, all of them) that ASD students have come from DECEMBER 2017
60
Arkansas Life
L E F T:
Shaq’ke reads El Deafo, a Newberry Awardwinning graphic novel written and illustrated by Cece Bell about her deaf childhood. The characters in the book are rabbits whose big ears symbolize “great hearing.”
DECEMBER 2017
61
Arkansas Life
They function like any other average person in the world, though they are far from it. They’re not special. They’re extraordinary.
DECEMBER 2017
62
Arkansas Life
ABOVE: Although ASD had to
suspend its football program in 2017 due to lack of players, Shaq’ke went on to play varsity football for Jacksonville High School, a hearing school, during his senior year. RIGHT: A foam finger in a classroom at ASD displays the sign for “I love you”—a combination of the letters I, L, and Y in which the thumb, index finger and little finger are extended.
DECEMBER 2017
63
Arkansas Life
Dec. 3
1st Thessalonians 5:1-11
Dec. 10 Isaiah 11:1-9 Dec. 17 Matthew 2:1-12 Dec. 24 John 1:1-5,14
The time between the times. Messianic time. Imperial time and Magi time. Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time for us.
Dec. 24 5:00 p.m.: Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion Service (Open Communion - All are welcomed.)
SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE
THYMES
Frasier Fir
Divin� candle� an� hom� fragrance�
1523 Rebsamen Park Rd | Riverdale Design District | Little Rock, AR 501-663-0460 | 10:00–5:30 Mon–Fri;10:00–4:00 Sat | cynthiaeastfabrics.com
SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE
Delta Cultural Center Museum Store Our Museum Store makes gift giving easy this holiday with unique, locally made products, music, books and more for everyone on your list. A MUSEUM OF
www.DeltaCulturalCenter.com
Mosaic Templars Cultural Center Museum Store Our Museum Store features items from the Arkansas Made, Black Crafted initiative with an array of handcrafted gifts made in Arkansas by African American artisans.
A MUSEUM OF
www.MosaicTemplarsCenter.com
Historic Arkansas Museum Store This holiday season, take a piece of Arkansas history home. Shop our Museum Store for Arkansas Made gifts like jewelry, pottery, knives and more!
A MUSEUM OF
www.HistoricArkansas.org
Old State House Museum Store Visit our Museum Store and find gifts for everyone on your list. Find handcrafted items made by Arkansas artisans, books about Arkansas history and more!
A MUSEUM OF
www.OldStateHouse.com
SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE
DECEMBER 2017
78
Arkansas Life
A GATHERING OF GOOD TASTE
80 CRAVINGS 82 FIRST TASTE 86 THE FEED
FIRST TASTE
42 BAR AND TABLE The Clinton Presidential Centerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s restaurant gets a second term By seth eli barlow Photography by Arshia Khan
Executive order: get the veal osso bucco.
DECEMBER 2017
79
Arkansas Life
CRAVINGS
FA LA LA LA FOODIES What did our fave local chefs and bartenders put on their holiday lists this year? We were hungry to know. (Whether they were naughty or nice, we’re not quite qualified to say.)
ALEX HAWK
The Pantry Crest
By Arshia Khan illustrations by nikki dawes
“A PolyScience sous-vide circulator.”
MARC GUIZOL
Capital Bar & Grill “I love to get fresh chestnuts. And candy canes for making desserts. And I miss snow, after 15 years in Montana.”
JASON PAUL Heirloom
JORDAN CRAIN Big Orange
CAPI PECK Trio’s
“New Wolf E-Series ovens to replace my 38-year-old models at home.” DECEMBER 2017
“A bartender I follow on Instagram just released a book he’s been working on called Meehan’s Bartender Manual. His Instagram handle is @mixography—check him out! Another idea: Patagonia Bee Products’ honey. My friend’s brother sources this honey from Argentina, and each one comes from a specific flower. You can buy it at the Green Corner Store.” 80
“Hmmmm … In a perfect world, I’d say: a Breville/ PolyScience Control Freak induction burner, the Eleven Madison Park: The Next Chapter cookbook and maybe some mugs and new plateware from Wolf Ceramics. And, of course, another Vitamix blender!” Arkansas Life
ZARA ABBASI WILKERSON
Just Desserts by Zara “A new set of copper pans—maybe from Brooklyn Copper Cookware, Mauviel or the All-Clad Copper Core set. Also, I love getting serveware like large platters and serving dishes.”
BRIAN DELONEY
Maddie’s Place “Now that I have kids, Christmas is all about them. I love seeing their excitement build up, and just watching how giddy they get. But I always look forward to the homemade cheese straws my parents make to pass out to friends. Hopefully I make the cut!”
MONICA CHATTERTON The Root Cafe
“I love reading cookbooks, so I want one of the many editions that’s been sitting in my Amazon cart, like Tartine by Elisabeth M. Prueitt and Chad Robertson of San Francisco’s Tartine Bakery. I’ve amassed a pretty good collection of vegetablebased books but need more about dessert-recipe aces and techniques now that I’m more focused on pastry!”
TITUS HOLLY
The Pantry West “A pasta maker-slash-extruder.”
MATTHEW COOPER
The Preacher’s Son “I love antique or coin-silver spoons for tasting or plating—the more worn and unique, the better. I also love antique butchery knives and sharpeners/honing rods.”
DECEMBER 2017
81
Arkansas Life
T h Fire pits and outdoor heaters on 42’s lovely patio mean you get to enjoy the view yearround.
FIRST TASTE
THE WORLD IS YOUR OYSTER Global fare meets gorgeous views at the newly revamped (and re-monikered) 42 Bar and Table By Seth Eli Barlow Photography by Arshia Khan
I
’ve always been the kind of person who likes having his own “secret” spots, those places that seem to avoid throngs of people and that I can claim as being my own undiscovered little corner of town. For several years, Forty Two, the groundfloor restaurant of the Clinton Presidential Center, has been one of those spots. The Center’s presence just east of downtown is hard to miss, but for most locals, Forty Two has flown under the radar since opening more than a decade ago—which, if I’m being honest, has always been part of its appeal. It’s been the kind of place I could duck into for a nice lunch and feel like I was at the center of something, a hive of activity, without ever feeling crowded or hurried. When it was announced in mid-October that my go-to lunch spot was about undergo a remodel, change its name to 42 Bar and Table and begin offering a dinner service, one thing became immediately clear: The jig was up. While dinner service at the restaurant may seem like a DECEMBER 2017
new concept, to many of the area’s luckiest foodies, it’s just an expansion of what’s become one of Arkansas’ hardest-toget reservations. For more than 10 years, they’ve served a monthly “Around the World” dinner, with each meal shining a spotlight on a specific cuisine. Always sold out, these dinners have become a local unicorn of sorts for many of us (read: yours truly). The wait list for reservations is long: over 300, with my own name sitting somewhere near the bottom. It was with that in mind that I sat down with Executive Chef Gilbert Alaquinez and Mike Selig, the Clinton Center’s director of food, beverage and special events. When I brought up the Around the World series they both laughed, and admitted that the decision to add a dinner service was partially born out
“We have people come here from all over the world. It feels good when they recognize something on the menu.” -
82
Arkansas Life
FIRST TASTE
Whether youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re craving cioppino or chicken pot pie, chef Gilbert Alaquinez (left) has you covered.
DECEMBER 2017
83
Arkansas Life
T
h Open till midnight on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, 42â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bar offers a new watering hole close to downtown.
DECEMBER 2017
84
Arkansas Life
FIRST TASTE
H Bold red-and-white stripes and patriotic starts—42 of ‘em, naturally—are positively presidential.
looking up onto the Center’s massive belly creates an intimate, secluded atmosphere, making it easy to forget that the noise and congestion of downtown Little Rock is just a few blocks away. As our conversation turned to the menu, I was surprised to find how diverse it was. An Indian curry is sandwiched between a Mexican take on lamb chops and a classic chicken pot pie. “We have people come here from all over the world,” Gilbert said, “and it feels good when they see the menu and see something they recognize.” Whenever possible, he’s blended Little Rock’s Southern heritage and even his own Texas upbringing into the food from other cultures. His take on a classic German schnitzel gets a Southern makeover with a helping of a mac-and-cheese-style späetzle, and where most chefs would simply serve a crab cake, Gilbert offers up crab empanadas. “We wanted to try and offer people the kind of comfort foods they would have in their own home,” Mike added. Gilbert admitted there’s an element of pressure to interpreting food from around the world. “You always want to make sure you’re offering [a guest] the best, ” he said, “but I’m always happy for the feedback and criticism.” While so many chefs try so hard to give their guests something new, Gilbert found his niche by giving his guests something familiar. “When you have a family come from India or Venezuela, and they come back to tell you that the food was just as good as they would have done it at home, that’s when it’s rewarding.”
T
42 BAR AND TABLE 1200 PRESIDENT CLINTON AVE. (501) 748-0454 | DINEATFORTYTWO.COM BEST DISHES
Lobster bisque, veal osso bucco and molé-spiced lamb chops. KID-FRIENDLY?
Yes, but fire pits are best enjoyed in the absence of little ones. PRICE RANGE
Dinner service entrees $10-$29 HOURS
Lunch, Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; dinner, Thursday through Saturday, 5-10 p.m.; bar, Thursday through Saturday, 5 p.m. to 12 a.m.
DECEMBER 2017
he next day, when I visited for dinner, there was an air of excitement in the newly remodeled dining room. The room’s previous incarnation had been sleek and minimal, but now I found a place redressed in a style that can only be described as bold and unabashedly patriotic. If ever there was a doubt about what the building above housed, it’s quickly silenced by the red and white stripes that run the length of the room, while on the opposite side, crystalline stars (42 of them, of course) are spread across a field of blue. The menu, varied as it is, offers a guests the chance to travel the world in a single meal, and I found myself stamping my mental passport as dishes were delivered to the table: India, Italy, Korea, Mexico. I selected a half dozen oysters on the half shell from a list of appetizers that offered everything from cheddar-and-chicken biscuits to Greek spanakopita, and even a deeply aromatic Japanese noodle bowl. The oysters were paired with a housemade hot sauce that’s now my front runner for best housemade anything in Little Rock. I hope it won’t be long before it’s bottled and available in the upstairs gift shop. When I asked what dish they would recommend I try, both Gilbert and Mike had been quick to mention the lobster bisque. It comes, just as it would in Spain, with a small carafe of sherry, allowing guests to flavor the soup to their liking. Gilbert also recommended the osso bucco, a perfectly cooked shank of veal surrounded by a cannellini ragu. Another highlight: a rack of molé-spiced lamb chops served atop sweet potatoes and creamy mustard. After dessert, a decadent slice of key-lime-and-basil cheesecake, I made my way out of the restaurant and passed once again by the renovated patio. In the warm glow of fire pits and heaters, the oversized chairs seemed more inviting than ever. As popular as my hidden gem is about to become, I suspect that I’ll still be able to get a table. And if not—well, there’s always the bar.
of those monthly dinners. “We wanted to be able to share that experience,” Mike said. “We’ve been talking about it for eight years, but we really began working on it at the beginning of this year.” Mike waved to the dining room’s wall of floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the new outdoor patio, where workers were making the final touches, arranging chairs around the patio’s multiple fire pits and making sure the oh-so-essential outdoor heaters were ready for use. “When you’re here at night, with the lights from the bridge catching on the glass and steel above you, it’s just beautiful.” I imagine he’s right, as the restaurant’s seemingly underground location allows its patios to open onto the sidewalks and trails tracing the river’s edge. The perspective of 85
Arkansas Life
THE FEED WHAT’S COOKING
INSTAFAMOUS IN FOUR STEPS The dos and don’ts of iPhone-ing your food, according to Arshia Khan, who iPhones all the food Clutter!
Sad overhead light!
Weird angle!
Too close!
PUT IT IN OUR STOCKINGS:
Oh, Lizano: You perfect thing. Smoky, sweet, savory, indescribable. We pour this Costa Rican sauce over anything and everything—and secretly drink it neat. In Little Rock, find it at Super Mercado La Regional. (7414 Baseline Road)
-Want even, ambient light? Find a window. -Less is more. See that napkin over there? Move it. -Get yourself a hand model. A bit of movement adds life. -Shoot overhead. We won’t judge if you have to stand on your chair. DECEMBER 2017
86
Arkansas Life
the opposite approach to Champagne. These producers are the ones who changed my mind. Their approach? It’s collectively termed “grower Champagne,” named as such because, unlike the larger Champagne houses, these producers actually grow their own grapes. The next time you’re near the Champagne section, look carefully at a wine’s front label. You’ll see two letters: either NM or RM. NM stands for NégociantManipulant, meaning that the producer sources most of its grapes from other farmers, while RM stands for Récoltant-Manipulant, meaning that the grapes were sourced from a single grower. Affectionately called “farmer fizz,” these RM wines eschew the traditional notions of what Champagne should be. Many growerChampagne producers flex their winemaking muscles by playing with the grapes used in the blend, by experimenting with age when blending their wines and by exploring the intricacies of their vineyards—the way the sun hits one section differently than another, or the way the soil is compacted. Champagne, perhaps more than any other wine, is perfect for exploring terroir: that magical confluence of climate, soil, sun and vine. The resulting bottles are often thought of as the “ugly ducklings” of Champagne, unconventional, yet astounding. When I first tasted these wines, it was like seeing in color for the very first time—the brightest of light-bulb moments. Good Champagne is an experience to be enjoyed, but a great Champagne— one that people spent their lives crafting, and one that’s as alive in your glass as it was in the field—is as close to high art as any food can become.
Feeling out ‘farmer fizz’ with our resident wine guru, Seth Eli Barlow
Moussé Fils ‘L’Or d’Eugene’ Brut, N.V. ($55) This bottling forgoes white grapes altogether to focus on pinot meunier and pinot noir in an 80/20 split. The resulting wine is full-bodied and rich, with surprising notes of chocolate-covered strawberry and pumpernickel toast. Called blanc de noirs, this winemaking style results in a white wine that still carries the slight hint of fruity, red aromas. The flavors are dreamlike, the ghosts of raspberries and cherry dancing on your tongue.
Pierre Péters ‘Cuvée de Réserve’ Brut, N.V. ($75) The word “Reserve” on the label of this wine made exclusively of chardonnay means that it’s been made from two vintages: half from the current vintage and half from wine that was “reserved” from the previous year’s blend. This creates a definite style without giving up the uniqueness of each vintage. There are heavy notes of brioche, marmalade and brown butter in this wine that even a novice Champagne drinker will pick out. If you see a bottle on the shelf, be sure to grab it—poor weather over the past two vintages means it’s in short supply.
I
’m going to tell you something that, not so long ago, I was afraid to say out loud: I used to hate Champagne. For much of my wine-loving life, I thought Champagne and most other sparkling wines were overrated. Don’t get me wrong—I still popped those corks on the regular, but it did take me a while to understand what all the fuss was about. Here’s the thing with Champagne: It has an extremely detailed production process. In France’s Champagne region, strict laws govern every facet of production. From the alcohol content to the way the vines are pruned, if there’s a choice to be made, there’s a law to govern it. French law allows for seven grape varieties to be planted, but the three most common are chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier, and it’s up to the winemaker to decide on how best to blend those grapes into a single wine. For most Champagne houses—the aforementioned Veuve Clicquot, for example—the winemaker’s goal is to make a wine that, year after year, tastes the same. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and the folks at Veuve Clicquot certainly know what they’re doing, but there’s an entire group of winemakers who are taking
DECEMBER 2017
Champagne Geoffroy Brut Rosé de Saignée, N.V. ($80) Winemaker Jean-Baptiste Geoffroy’s rosé is rare in that it uses the saignée method to produce an intensely colored wine. To do this, he makes a traditional still wine from his pinot noir grapes, and during the first few hours of fermentation, while the wine is still bright pink but before it has the chance to become red, he “bleeds” off some of the juice to make a rosé. Rich and seductive, this is the wine that you’ll want to be opening with that special someone.
2007 Champagne Pierre Morlet Brut Mellésime ($80) Lest I convince you that wines from a major Champagne house aren’t wonderful: This rare vintage Champagne from 2007 is a spectacular example of how dramatic the wine can be as it ages. Ten years after harvest, the wine is now the color of golden wheat with notes of yellow apples, baked pear and a rich, nutty essence. If the ballroom scene in Beauty and the Beast had a flavor, it would taste like this. 87
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
88
Arkansas Life
MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR WEEKEND
90 WISH YOU WERE HERE 94 HOMETOWN 98 CULTURALIST 100 AFIELD
WISH YOU WERE HERE
HILLTOP HIDEAWAY Head to Leatherwood Lodge when you really need to get away from it all By Katie Bridges Photography by Arshia Khan
It may be off the grid, but there’s nothing backwoods about this solarpowered “cabin.”
DECEMBER 2017
89
Arkansas Life
“I
It’s a trail that he built himself, relatively recently, employing “a chainsaw and one of those commercial blowers” on a parcel of 100 acres he’s owned for 20 years. When you’re the one building the trail on land that’s yours and yours alone, you can determine where it goes, what the trailgoer sees. And as we’re walking and the trees start to thin, I see it. It catches my breath. “It’s weird, isn’t it?” Holt says, stepping onto a precipice he calls Chapel Rock, walking to the edge and placing his hands on a lichen-speckled boulder— an immense limestone monolith that looks like a piece of Stonehenge, albeit one rolled on its side. “I mean, how did it get here?” I nod but do not respond, as my mind’s too busy processing the scene around me. Three hundred and fifty feet below us, Big Creek’s wending its way through a tree-smothered valley. Beyond the creek’s bend, the Ozark National Forest stretches as far as eye can see. There are hills and bluffs and birds and, well, damn-near everything—everything except anyone else. I feel a million miles from anywhere, though
THE VIEW IS ALMOST INESCAPABLE—IT’S VISIBLE FROM THE DECK, FROM THE LIVING ROOM, FROM YOUR BED. MORNING COFFEE’S NEVER TASTED SO GOOD. Ever wanted your very own hiking trail? Whelp, here you go.
DECEMBER 2017
want to show you why I bought this place,” Holt Condren says to me as I follow him down a mossy, manicured trail, its surface soft and almost spongy beneath my feet.
90
I was just driving through Marshall 30 minutes before. So, yes, I’m wondering how that rock got here, but I’m also wondering, how did I get here? How did Holt get here, those 20 years ago? I ask as much, and he tells me it was a bit of luck and a leap of faith. At the time, he was 33 years old. He couldn’t really afford the place, and he certainly couldn’t afford to do much of anything with it, but it called to him. Not that he needed many creature comforts, anyways. He’s a capital-O Outdoorsman, the Arkansas version of Bear Grylls—the kind of person you imagine could survive in the woods for a month with three matches, a pocket knife and an extra long Slim Jim. After closing the deal, he spent the next two-ish decades getting to know the property, fishing the creek with his kids, camping in the clearings, walking above and below the blufflines and into the cave and over the ridgetop until he knew every single inch of the place. And then, two years ago, along with his business partner, he started building what he calls Leatherwood Lodge: a solarpowered, off-the-grid, super Arkansas Life
WISH YOU WERE HERE
h No detail’s been overlooked in this 2,500-square-foot house, which sleeps 18. (Though we completely understand if you don’t want to bring anyone else with you.)
luxe “cabin” where, by my own bit of luck, I get to spend the night. As we walk back toward the “cabin,” Holt uses the toe of his boot to kick rocks off the path and send errant sticks to the side. Where the trail meets the house, he stops and looks out over the valley view, scanning the horizon. He apologizes. “I’m sorry, the trees just aren’t popping like they usually do,” he says. Again, I nod. Not in agreement, but because I’m still in shock at what I’m seeing. And then he’s shaking our hands, bidding us adieu. (I’ve invited the rest of the staff along. They’re feeling lucky, too.) “I’ll leave you to it,” he says with a smile, lingering for a moment before he walks back to his truck. Because there’s only one thing that excites him more than spending time on this property, and that’s seeing the looks on people’s faces when they realize they have it all to themselves.
carved cathedral—a sanctuary devoted to the land beyond. Except with a SubZero fridge and three full bathrooms and enough beds to sleep 18. The house is stunning. No detail has been overlooked, no need left unsatisfied. There’s everything from a castiron skillet to a French press in the kitchen—even a popcorn maker should you feel so inclined. There’s Taboo in the game closet and a cache of DVDs beneath the TV. There’s a place to set your drink beside the shuffleboard table, extra fuzzy blankets on the bed, overstuffed couches galore, half a dozen chairs perched on the covered deck, magazines next to the reading chairs. But beautiful as it is—as much as that overstuffed couch seems to be saying, Curl up on me! Light a fire!—it’s just a matter of seconds before we’ve got our fleeces on and laces doubleknotted and are standing by the door, itching to explore. Once outside, we scatter like kids unleashed at recess. There’s an arched sign hewn from logs marking the start of the Big Creek Trail, and it beckons me, though the rest of the group heads the other direction. Ten minutes down the path, I realize I’ve never been on a trail, by myself, in the woods. And it feels exhilarating. Maybe it’s being alone, or maybe it’s just how meticulously Holt has maintained the trail, but my walk soon turns into a jog, then into a scramble, then into a full-on run once I reach the clearing below
W
e have this place all to ourselves. “If this is the view from the driveway, I can’t wait to see inside,” our senior editor Jordan says, and the rest of us can’t wait, either. After the wooden front door swings open, the first thing we see is an immense two-story stone fireplace, flanked on either side by walls of east-facing windows that flood the space with light. Our eyes then move upward, taking in the timber-framed ceiling and the iron-and-cedar-railed sleeping loft. Standing there, gazing up and out, it’s not unlike being in the nave of a rustic, handDECEMBER 2017
91
Arkansas Life
LEATHERWOOD LODGE NEAR MARSHALL SLEEPS:
18: 4 queens, 2 sets of bunk beds, 2 twin beds and 2 sleeper sofas AMENITIES:
100 private acres, 1 mile of Big Creek frontage, manicured hiking and ATV trails, fully stocked kitchen, wood-burning stove, fire pit, shuffleboard table, ridiculously cozy beds and arguably the best sunrise of your life. RATES:
$45 per person with a 6-person minimum ($270); minimum 2-night stay INFO:
leatherwoodcabin.com
The sunrise view from Chapel Rock is more than worth an early wake-up call.
DECEMBER 2017
92
Arkansas Life
WISH YOU WERE HERE
h One mile of Big Creek frontage is all yours. Also: shuffleboard. Also, also: that sunrise.
SEE ALSO Soooo … Leatherwood isn’t close to much. But if you do want to get out, here’s where the getting’s good
Skylark Cafe 401 High St., Leslie If you’re driving in from Little Rock, make sure you leave in time for lunch at this Leslie cafe, which is worthy of all the heart-eye emojis ever. Or just stop in for a slice or three of strawberry pie. (Can we tell you a secret? Sometimes we make the trek from Little Rock just for that pie.) (skylarkcafe.com)
the bluffline. I keep running until the trail turns into river stones and I find myself on the creek bed, a hundred yards or so from the rest of the crew. They’ve been exploring on their own, too, and they’re skipping stones and pocketing pebbles as their laughter echoes off the limestone cliffs surrounding us. “It’s weird,” says Wyndham, our associate editor, as he flings a stone across the creek’s crystalline surface. “I mean, it feels familiar, like my childhood memories of being out in nature, but it’s so strange to know we can run up and down the creek and never see anyone. No one can get here.” Hours later, sitting around the firepit out back, feeling close to the moon and mesmerized by the clouds that whip past it, we realize it: There’s nothing around. Like, nothing. It’s eerily quiet, and there’s just one tiny blip of light across the way, likely some sort of ridgetop DECEMBER 2017
tower alight in the National Forest. “This is what it must’ve been like way back when,” Emma, our creative director, says. We sit in silence for a few moments, taking in the darkness. As free as we’d felt earlier in the day, we employ the buddy system to walk back up to the cabin.
I
t’s not quite 7 a.m. and people are stirring, and here’s why that’s significant: These people don’t typically “stir” in the morning, and the beds we slept in aren’t the kind of beds you want to get out of. We’ve slept through sunrises before. Plenty of ’em. But this property faces due east, and the spectacle isn’t to be missed, we’ve been told. We bundle up and head out before coffee, before breakfast, back down the trail. We reach Chapel Rock just as the sun begins to show itself behind the ridgeline. The clouds that danced around the moon last night have lingered, and soon the sky’s painted wispy orange and the lichen on the rock is glowing. I settle down, criss-cross-applesauce, sitting closer to the edge than I typically would. Coffee can wait. Heck, lunch can wait. So can dinner. Because as nice as Holt’s Leatherwood Lodge is, there’s something about the land around it that calls to you, like it called to Holt: Come outside. And sure, it’s the view. And the creek. And that soft, spongy trail. But it’s also a palpable connection to the land, one forged over 20 years, that almost emanates from the moss and the rocks and the bluffs and the trees. This place is loved. It’s cared for. It’s known. So, Holt, to answer your question: I don’t know how that rock got there. But I sure am glad you found it. 93
Crockett’s Country Store Junction Highway 14 and 27, Harriet Big Creek’s one of main feeder streams for the Buffalo River, and Crockett’s Country Store in nearby Harriet is the closest outfitter who can get you out on the water. (buffalorivercanoerental. com)
Kenda Drive-In 107 Westwood Dr., Marshall The oldest in the state (and the only one open year-round), Marshall’s Kenda Drive-In theater still uses those old-fangled speakers. And since this is Searcy County, they serve chocolate rolls at the concession. (facebook.com/ kendadrivein)
Daisy Queen 614 U.S. Highway 65, Marshall Delicious, diner-y burgers are the draw at the roadside dairy bar, but if you’ve got a hankering for anything from a blueberry sundae to a chicken burrito, odds are you’ll find it here. (facebook.com/daisyqueen1966) Arkansas Life
YOU’VE GOT OPTIONS, BARBECUE PEOPLE. “THE RIB CRIB HAS THE BEST PRICES,” SAYS RESIDENT TERRI BRANNON, “BUT DICKEY’S HAS THE BEST OKRA.”
I HOMETOWN
RESTING EASY From brisket to the historic Black House, finding solace in Searcy By Heather Steadham Photography by Arshia Khan
DECEMBER 2017
have a slight toothache. I need to go to the bathroom. I’m at the edge of a headache. I’m tired from working 40-plus hours this week and taking care of a husband and three kids and finishing up my novel, and gosh darn it if my middle child didn’t bring home a stray dog two days ago. Come to me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest, proclaims Matthew 11:28 on a billboard about 10 miles before I arrive in Searcy. Searcy. Home of Harding University. Seat of White County, and its largest city at 24,318 souls. Home of Gov. Mike Beebe. Holder of two Arkansas superlatives: the oldest known church building still standing (Smyrna Methodist) and the oldest Arkansas courthouse still being used for its original purpose. These facts? They don’t exactly portend a people inclined to rest. I arrive at Searcy Parks and Recreation’s Holiday Craft Fair preview (the full one scheduled for December 2) at the Carmichael Community Center. There’s a mostly cloudy sky today, as a forecaster would call it, and there’s just enough nip in the air to get me into a holiday-shopping mood. A primary-colored playground sits out front, and a little girl—appropriately clad in Santa-Claus red— squeals in delight as her dad goes down the slide with her. One synonym for rest is “peace.” Stationed just outside the entrance to the Craft Fair is Bonnie Graves, selling wares for Damsel in Defense. She tells me about the “Holla Hers” personal alarms and “Sock It to Me” kubotans and “Junk in the Trunk” auto emergency kits. “I also sell Tupperware,” she informs me. She moved to Searcy to semi-retire, and I ask her what makes her want to live here. “I wanted to slow down, get out of big-city Texas life.” It seems she found her peace, which, apparently, involves selling “Get a Grip” handheld stun guns. Inside the community center, I find baked goods from the St. James Ladies Guild and tchotchkes from Porcelain Painting by Glenda and the most amazing two-tone wood cutting and cheese boards from Father and Daughter Creations. But I stop in my tracks when I see a table festooned with whimsical lamps made from stacked teapots and teacups and sugar bowls and all things Alice in Wonderland. “I get pieces from Goodwill, Habitat, the Humane Society,” 94
Mykila Wages tells me. She has a booth at Family and Friends Emporium in Judsonia, a scant 7 miles f rom Searcy. One lamp in particular is especially delightful, candy-colored and centered around a flowered owl. “Dreaminess,” believe it or not, is yet another synonym for rest. Eighteen laps around the community center equals one mile. I walk one-eighteenth of a mile. On my way out, I see Jenn’s Unique Boutique. Jennifer Gregory’s day job is at Sowell’s Furniture (“It has all the best stuff! And we have decorators, so if you buy your furniture from us, we’ll decorate your room for free!”), and Jenn has no shortage of things I absolutely must see before I leave Searcy: “Dickey ’s Barbecue—their brisket is to die for. And Stu’s Brew, if you like coffee. And the town square. And the historic homes on Center Street, and the Black House on Race Road; it’s yellow, but it was owned by the Black Family. And the Rialto! They’re redoing it. And Spring Park! They’re putting in an ice-skating rink. I want to try ice skating.” It looks like I’d better get moving. Spring Park sits at the corner Arkansas Life
SEARCY POPULATION:
24,318 (2016 Census) COUNTY:
White
DRIVING DISTANCE FROM LITTLE ROCK:
52 miles WHY YOU’RE GOING THERE:
Where else can you get Alaskan dumplings with a side of the state’s largest Santa collection? CLAIM TO FAME:
Home of Gov. Mike Beebe SEE ALSO:
The Christmas lights at Harding University
SEARCY’S RIALTO IS ONE OF THE FEW HISTORIC THEATERS IN THE STATE THAT MAINTAINS A WEEKLY SCHEDULE OF SHOWINGS.
DECEMBER 2017
95
Arkansas Life
HOMETOWN
SEEKING SEARCY Must-sees and -dos around town
Slader’s Alaskan Dumpling Co. If you get hooked on Juneau-native Slader Marshall’s dumplings—chicken or beef, mixed with curry, cilantro and Sriracha in a buttered, boiled pasta shell—don’t panic: He also operates a food truck that makes frequent appearances in Little Rock. (301 E. Center Ave; sadcoak.com)
Stu’s Brew Coffee & Espresso It wouldn’t be a college town without a good coffee shop, and this relatively new spot hits the mark. Good beans and friendly baristas—the kind who remember your order and don’t roll their eyes when you order “the kind with the espresso and the foamy milk.” (304 Beebe Capps Expressway; (501) 593-0343)
THIS TOWN TAKES CHRISTMAS SERIOUSLY. VISIT SEARCY.COM/HOLIDAYOFLIGHTS FOR A LIST OF EVENTS.
of Pleasant and Main. A family kicks around a ball, and a woman walks around the trail, and not one but two rock footbridges span a stone canal that winds through the park. And, as advertised, an ice-skating rink is being constructed under a pavilion. It’s not ready yet, but I, too, want to try ice skating here. After all, another word for rest is “recreation.” Four blocks away is the yellow Black House. Built in the latter half of the 19th century, this historic home now doubles as the Searcy Art Gallery. “Come in!” a plucky, disembodied voice floats to me as I enter the back door, as family would. I follow the smell of barbecue to a tiny office, where Terri Brannon, Searcy Art Gallery director, is finishing up a late lunch. “That wouldn’t happen to be Dickey’s, would it?” I ask. “This is [from] the Rib Crib,” Terri replies, seemingly unfazed that an outsider would make such an informed guess. “The Rib Crib has the best prices, but Dickey’s has the best okra.” I do love me some okra. DECEMBER 2017
The Art Gallery’s current exhibition showcases more than 100 pieces by retired local elementary school teacher and chain-hotelname-sharer Howard Johnson. There are acrylics, oils, watercolors— even some pen-and-ink and mixed-media works. His art is charming, with a captivating perspective on local (and exotic) landmarks, and the gallery has sold over $5,000 of his work in the first week alone. I walk through Black House, smelling the old oiled wood of the vintage fireplaces, adoring the white beadboard ceilings and remembering my own childhood home as I look at the wide plank floors and the crank doorbell at the entrance. Even the hinges on the door frames are worthy of attention, with their ornate metalwork singing of older (more restful?) times. Debbie Higgs, with her magnificent head of blonde, curly hair, shares the office with Terri. Debbie knows exactly where I need to go. “The Boutique on Spring Street,” she declares. She follows up with “Oh!” sighed in the perfect Southern swan. “They have fabulous things,” Terri agrees. “They have fabulous things,” Debbie reiterates. She goes on to tell me, stoplight by stoplight, how to get there. “I get in trouble every blessed time. I tell myself I don’t need one single thing! Honest to God, I don’t.” But she goes anyway, because, I imagine, it’s where she finds her own kind of rest. I get into my car and cruise the square. I see Glass From the Past stained-glass studio, the spectacularly archetypal Stotts Drug Store, the quaint Quattlebaum Music Center and the art-deco Rialto Theater. Folks are just getting out of a free showing of The Polar Express. I bask in the nostalgia of it all. I feel tranquil, amused and—dare I say it?—rested. 96
The Boutique When in small Southern towns, here’s a tip for you: Hit up the shop where all the locals do their wedding registries. In Searcy, that’s the aptly named The Boutique, which proffers everything from cream-and-butter fudge to Pine Cone Hill bedding to Le Creuset Dutch ovens. (112 N. Spring St.; searcyboutique.com)
White County Pioneer Village This step-back-in-time project by the White County Historical Society has preserved a collection of 19th-century buildings including a log home, a blacksmith shop, a schoolhouse and the like. Swing by on Dec. 2 for their Christmas open house with musiciansslash-carolers and sugar cookies made from a 100-year-old recipe. (1200 Higginson St.; (501) 278-5010)
Searcy Art Gallery Exhibits change often at this gallery housed in an antebellum Victorian manse called the Black House, whose 151-year-old story is as compelling a reason to visit as the art that hangs inside. (300 E. Race Ave.; facebook. com/searcyartgallery) Arkansas Life
&
DECEMBER 2017
97
Arkansas Life
CULTURALIST WHERE TO BE THIS MONTH
MARIEL CAPANNA’S LITTLE STONE, OPEN HOME AT GOOD WEATHER IN NORTH LITTLE ROCK
12.9
THE CYCLOFROST CYCLOCROSS RACE ON THE NORTH SHORE OF LAKE FAYETTEVILLE
12.15-17
ARKANSAS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA’S HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS CONCERT AT THE ROBINSON CENTER IN LITTLE ROCK
12.19-23
FINDING NEVERLAND AT THE WALTON ARTS CENTER IN FAYETTEVILLE
HANDMADE HOLIDAY 12.2: Wampus Wonderland Holiday Craft Show at Fayetteville Town Center Expect watercolor prints, woven wall hangings, soy candles poured in vintage glass jars, minimalist ceramic jewelry. Oh, and pie.
12.16: Little Craft Show at The Record in Bentonville Expect upcycled leather clutches, hand-thrown planters, sustainable face serums, mudcloth pillows.
12.8-10
WITH VISIONS OF SUGARPLUM FAIRIES
... at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville when New York artist Carrie Mae Weems stops by for a lecture. You might remember seeing one of her most revered photo series, The Kitchen Table, when it was on view in the museum’s Black Unity exhibition. Good news: The series is now part of the Crystal Bridges collection. (crystalbridges.org) DECEMBER 2017
That’s how you’ll leave the Robinson Center in Little Rock after Ballet Arkansas’ annual production of The Nutcracker, which features both company members and a “community cast” of the cutest little mice and angels you ever did see. (balletarkansas.org) 98
Arkansas Life
CARRIE MAE WEEMS, UNTITLED (WOMAN FEEDING BIRD), 1990, GELATIN SILVER PRINT, 28 1/4 × 28 1/4 IN © CARRIE MAE WEEMS. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ARTIST AND JACK SHAINMAN GALLERY, NEW YORK. CRYSTAL BRIDGES MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART, BENTONVILLE, ARKANSAS.
12.2
12.8
11.29 - 12.24
GET IN THE SPIRIT ... courtesy of the Arkansas Repertory Theatre in Little Rock’s The Gift of the Magi, a musical retelling of O. Henry’s beloved short story on love, sacrifice and the true meaning of Christmas. (therep.org)
12.7
10. THÉOPHILE LYBAERT, BELGIAN (GHENT, BELGIUM, 1848 – 1927, GHENT, BELGIUM), SOUVENIRS D’AUTREFOIS, N.D., BLACK CRAYON ON PAPER, 32 ¼ X 22 INCHES. IMAGE COURTESY OF JACK KILGORE & CO., INC., NEW YORK.
THROUGH 1.7
That’s Spanish for “dinner and a show,” and that’s what’s on offer when the Latin Jazz All Stars take the stage at South on Main in Little Rock. Keep an ear out for trombonist Steve Turre—he’s an SNL band veteran—and conga player Chembo Corniel, who nabbed a Grammy nom this year for Best Latin Jazz Album. (southonmain.com)
... the Big Apple without leaving Little Rock at the 49th Collectors Show and Sale. An annual Arkansas Arts Center event, the sale features a curation of works, priced from under $500 to $85,000, hand-picked from New York City’s top galleries by the AAC Collectors Group. (arkansasartscenter.org) DECEMBER 2017
99
Arkansas Life
AFIELD
GETTING THE PICTURE Daily, we drool over their Instagram feeds, wondering how these Arkansas photographers’ nature shots capture The Natural State so perfectly, so vibrantly, and ours … don’t. So we wanted to know: What does it take to get the shot? By Mariam Makatsaria
TANNER BURGE
@tannergburge LOCATION: Boxley Valley TIME OF DAY: After sunrise, around 7 a.m. EQUIPMENT: Nikon D7200 with a Nikkor 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G lens
“That was actually kind of a scary picture to take. I called that photo ‘Ham in the Morning,’ because a lot of locals in Ponca call that elk ‘Ham.’ I was sitting at the edge of the field with a friend of mine, taking these pictures. The elk just kept moving closer and closer to us. Finally, we got uneasy enough to get up and clear out because one of the bigger bulls was coming around behind us, too. Those herds were brought into Arkansas from the Rocky Mountains in the ’80s. Besides the herds being unique to Arkansas, it’s just a really cool experience to go out and watch a wild elk herd like that.” ON ANIMALS: “Respecting the animal is key. Make sure you aren’t disturbing the animals’ schedule and
their day. Respect their space.”
DECEMBER 2017
100
Arkansas Life
JORDAN CRAIG @jcraigopro
LOCATION: The Nars, near Woolum TIME OF DAY: During sunrise at 5:45 a.m. EQUIPMENT: Canon 6D with Canon 24-105mm f/4 L lens
“The shot was at the Narrows, also known as the Nars, near Woolum. I went out there to camp for the night with three friends of mine. At the very top of the ridge, there’s a perfect camping spot. We all set up our hammocks. We set up a fire. Early the next morning, we got up, and it was just insanely beautiful. The sun was still coming up from behind the ridge. It was kind of eerie, very moody and dark. When we first woke up and saw the fog, we thought it would be a tough morning to get any decent shots, but the fog cleared away pretty quickly. The water was just so smooth. It wasn’t flowing. It was just kind of stagnant and gave us a really, really good reflection.” ON SHOOTING WHEN IT’S FOGGY:
“Shoot for the sky. When you’re taking photos, you have to either bring your light settings down so you can capture the sky, and then the foreground will be really dark, or you bring your lights up so you can get that foreground really nice, clear and well-lit. For this shot, I brought them way down; then I was able to capture that fog and all those colors.”
HENRY O. HEAD
@hennythepooh LOCATION: North Fork River TIME OF DAY: Around 6 p.m. EQUIPMENT: Canon 6d with a 35mm lens
“i take photos for a clothing line called Fayettechill, and I was on an assignment last December. The shoot happened on a whim. We were down on the North Fork River trying to pick up some shots. We knew there was going to be bad weather, but we got out there anyway. In this photo, there was kind of a break in the storm that was passing. That’s how the light just washed over the field and turned it all gold, while the sky remained so dark.” ON OVERCOMING BAD WEATHER: “It’s a mixture of patience and initiative. When the opportunity presents
itself, it’s helpful to know your gear well. Also, it’s better to have your aperture wide open to get more in focus instead of having a really shallow depth of field that only shows you one thing.”
DECEMBER 2017
101
Arkansas Life
TRENT SUGG
@blkelkmedia LOCATION: Redding-Spy Rock Loop TIME OF DAY: Around 8:30 a.m. EQUIPMENT: Canon 5D Mark IV with Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L lens
“my old college roommate came into town, and we had backpacked all over the state together. He’d come back for just a couple of days, and we decided to get out of town and do a quick backpacking trip like in the old days. So we did the Redding-Spy Rock Loop near the Mulberry River. It’s like 8 miles, so we decided to stay overnight. Once we got to the top where the lookout is, we pitched camp there. It was 80 degrees when we hiked that day, and when we woke up, it was in the 40s. It stormed pretty hard on us. We were getting ready to pack up and leave, and I was down picking up some stuff near the overlook. I looked back over to the tent and thought, Oh, that’s kind of cool! So I just framed the shot through the wedge of those rocks.” ON THE RULE OF THIRDS: “Break your photo down into thirds. You’ve got the subject in the middle, the foreground and your background. If you can keep that in mind when you’re shooting, you’ll do well. It doesn’t have to be dead center. You can use your foreground to lead someone’s eye to the center, for example, like the rocks I used.”
CONNOR COCKRELL @wolfandpine
LOCATION: Little Red River TIME OF DAY: After golden hour, at dusk EQUIPMENT: Canon 6D with Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L lens
“I was invited along by a good friend of mine to the Little Red River. We drove out during the week, so it was a spontaneous trip that felt like an adventure. I think it was early spring, and it was still kind of cold outside. It was just starting to get dusky, and a layer of fog had come through. It almost created a painting effect. The focus was actually on the guy’s hat, which gave the photo a focal point rather than it being a flat image. Standing on the shore, you could look out and feel like you were in another world. Then you could walk toward the parking lot, and you’re back to a small town in Arkansas.” ON SHOOTING WHEN IT’S CLOUDY: “People tend to just focus on the golden hour in the morning or in the evening. The best time to get good photos is when it’s cloudy out because you get a lot more even lighting, so it allows you to mess with color more. Shooting with fog can also be a great opportunity to create some good contrast.”
DECEMBER 2017
102
Arkansas Life
AFIELD
WILL PORTER
@the_willporter LOCATION: Lake Enterprise TIME OF DAY: Early morning, around 8 a.m. EQUIPMENT: Canon AE-1 with Canon FD 28 mm f/2.8 lens
“this was at Lake Enterprise, pretty close to the ArkansasLouisiana border. I had seen a photo of the lake in a Tim Ernst book, and I thought the place looked pretty sweet. It was early in the summer. I took my kayak and drove out there. It was five hours from Fayetteville, so it was a pretty good little drive. It was in this tiny little town, but there was this cool little lake right there off the highway. I set up my hammock and spent the night there. When I woke up that morning, there was a thin layer of mist over the water. The sun came up and cleared out all the fog. I kind of paddled around and had a little run-in with an alligator. It was just so beautiful out there with the cypress trees, and I have a lot of photos from that day.”
JEFF ROSE
@thejeffrose LOCATION: Ponca TIME OF DAY: 1:43 a.m. EQUIPMENT: Sony a7rii with Sony FE 24-70 mm f/2.8 lens
“that picture is overlooking Ponca, up on the mountain near where I live. I went out hiking with one of my friends around sunset. I was on my way home when I saw the sky and stopped. The Milky Way was just so perfectly over the ridge there, and there was a lot of morning fog starting to form. I really love fog, and it’s pretty rare, at least from what I’ve seen, to actually have a nice sky with the fog. I always have my camera ready because you never know what you’re going to come across. This was just a really nice scene that I happened to catch as I was ending my day.”
ON WAKING UP WITH A VIEW:
“Any chance you get to camp out, do it. Waking up and spending the day in that environment— that’s really when you get your best photos.”
ON CAPTURING THE STARS AT NIGHT: “One thing that can be
difficult is getting your stars in focus. One thing I’ll do is zoom in on the brightest star in the sky and use the focus ring on my lens to make that star as sharp as possible. That way, whenever I’m taking a landscape photo, the stars are in focus.” DECEMBER 2017
103
Arkansas Life
One Take
In which we gave former Arkansas Parks & Tourism photographer A.C. Haralson a Polaroid, a roll of film and one chance to get the shot.
PUBLIC ART: A STUDY The weather was perfect. It was a blue-sky day. There weren’t a lot of people around. It was a perfect day—other than the camera I had. I keep going back to that camera. I mean, I tried and tried and tried. You have to walk forwards or backwards or sideways. You can’t zoom in, you can’t zoom out, so you do it with your feet. You shoot a picture. You can’t see anything. It’s not there for 20-30 minutes. And then it’s real pale, and it’s not sharp. And I took my phone out to shoot it and went, Oh, god, this is beautiful. But long as you guys are happy, that’s all that matters to me. You just have to work with what you have. As told to Jordan P. Hickey Photographed by A.C. Haralson
DECEMBER 2017
104
Arkansas Life
UNLIMITED PATHWAYS Close to home
Taylor Jaggers Rison, Ark. Dance Major
Apply now. ualr.edu DECEMBER 2017
iii
Arkansas Life
DECEMBER 2017
iv
Arkansas Life
