This blog is about the little story that could, Glome’s Valley. Many years ago, my husband and I saw an Oklahoma travel show on TV that talked about the Heavener Runestone. At that time, the park belonged to the State of Oklahoma, and we were wanting to get away for a fall weekend. We went to Heavener, got a hotel and drove to Mt. Poteau. It took a while to find the faded signs and the route that got us to the top of the hill but we did it.

It’s a beautiful part of Oklahoma in the southeast corner of the state and it was fall with all the magnificent colors of the leaves. We came to see the runestone and then on over to the Talimena Drive. The drive is famous in the fall for leaf peepers and motorcyclists as well as anyone else who is looking for a beautiful weekend.

We parked at the top of the mountain and walked down the stairs to find the runestone which is now enclosed in glass to protect the sandstone monolith. The stone stands upright with carving which is said to be ancient Viking. There are many across what is now the United States and there are those who believe that white Europeans were on this continent long before Columbus. Whether that is true or not, a story was born.

We went into the gift shop at the top of the hill and found a book by Gloria Farley, In Plain Sight, that I came home and ordered since they only had one copy. She was from the Heavener area and talked about these ruins and others. While we were in the shop a young man came in with his preschool son and wanted to look at the book. I overheard him say he was an archeologist working on his PhD. I thought how cool for the boy to follow his father in his research.

That is when the idea for Glome’s Valley came into my head. Though Ethan is older than the boy with his dad that day, the premise is the same. In Glome’s Valley, Ethan comes to the valley with his father and the Oklahoma fairytale begins. Did I mention the area was magical?

Lately, I reconnected with the gift shop and they asked me to have a book signing there. They have an employee of the park who is an artist and she has created a coloring book and we will be together signing our books on October 5, 2024, from 12 – 2:00 pm. Come see us at the gift shop where it all began!

I love the forest near Heavener. They have a sign on the trail to beware of trolls! Ethan bumped into more than his share of those on his journey in the book. The area around the stone is magical and anything can happen, but that is Another Story for another Time.

What are you reading/writing/creating this week?