Walking Where The Great Western And Olive Oatman Strode

 September 4, 2024

   As you probably know, I am a firm believer in walking where they walked. When I see what they saw and feel the earth like they did, I get so much more insight into their lives. Last Friday we stopped in Yuma and it certainly wasn't the first time I was there (I played basketball against Kofa High School in 1964) but I am still haunted by two women I met there this time. Of course I have met them before, but somehow standing where they stood and seeing what they saw (minus the I-08 overpass) really stuck with me.

Daily Reworked Whip Out:

"The Great Western And

Her Second Artillery Cap"

   Yes, the original was done in 2017 but I saw it in my archives when we got home from the land of Bashan, and I thought it could use another pass. Same for another rendering of Sarah Bowman, when she was younger, but still full of sass.

Daily Reworked Whip Out:

"Young Sarah Bowman"

   And, of course, the other young woman I encountered, also needs no introduction.

Daily Whip Out:

"The Return of Olive Oatman"

   When she was returned to Fort Yuma, after almost five years in captivity, the commander didn't believe she was a white woman. Finally, someone showed him her fair skin behind her ear and he relented.

"We could not erase the wild from her heart."
—Susan Thompson, who took in Olive after her ordeal