Flying Lessons & Other Stories

The story begins with a family gathering in the Texas backyard of the narrator’s Choctaw grandmother, whom they call MawMaw. The narrator, nicknamed “Turtle Kid” by Uncle Kenneth, does not have a specified gender, so this guide will use they/them pronouns. The family gathering is a weekly occurrence, bringing together the narrator’s extended family for a cookout. The narrator’s mother warns against listening to anything Uncle Kenneth has to say.

After his mother goes inside the house to check on the food, Uncle Kenneth beckons the narrator over. Turtle Kid’s cousins eventually follow. The other adults shake their heads, knowing he is about to tell a tall tale. At this point, the narrator notes that this is a hallmark of family: communication without speaking.

When the narrator reaches Uncle Kenneth, who is sitting in a chair by a pond, they sit at the man’s feet and wait. Uncle Kenneth states that the narrator’s mother is a smart lady, but then gives a look communicating that, despite her intelligence, she does not know all. The narrator reiterates that this is the way Choctaw talk to each other, without words.

Uncle Kenneth reminds Turtle Kid that he has already told stories about the Bohpoli, little mischievous wood sprites in Choctaw tales. The older man also declares that Turtle Kid will be the narrator’s Choctaw name. He proceeds to start retelling a story of Bohpoli trailing behind a family’s car in the Kiamichi Mountains of Oklahoma. At the start of the story, Turtle Kid participates by clarifying details, but when Uncle Kenneth asks if they already know the story, the narrator closes his mouth and gestures that they will not say another word.

Uncle Kenneth resumes the tale of the family driving near midnight. Mr. Chukma, the father and driver of the car, pulled to the side of the road so the family could rest for the night. When he got out of the car, he heard a noise. Instead of saying anything, Turtle Kid leans forward with interest. Uncle Kenneth builds the suspense by whispering and looking around as he says Mr. Chukma heard the noise again. Uncle Kenneth claps his hands together and shouts, causing the narrator to tumble over. Everyone at the barbecue laughs, including the narrator’s mother, who again warns them not to listen to the older man.

Uncle Kenneth urges Turtle Kid not to listen to their mother, and the narrator agrees. Then, Uncle Kenneth resumes the tale, noting that Mr. Chukma heard the noise again and jumped back into the car, holding his wife and commanding his three children to get down in the backseat. As the man turned to soothe his children, his wife tapped him on the shoulder, but before he could turn, he heard a loud growl. Everyone screamed. It was Naloosha Chitto, the Choctaw equivalent of Bigfoot, walking around the car and slinging a giant log back and forth between his shoulder and hand.

At this point in Uncle Kenneth’s tale, the hordes of cousins all gather around Turtle Kid, sitting on the grass and listening in on the story. The narrator declares that once Uncle Kenneth took another breath, all of them were transported from the Texas backyard to the Kiamichi Mountains, hoping that Naloosha Chitto would leave.

In dramatic fashion, Uncle Kenneth reveals that Naloosha Chitto swung the log into the hood and windshield of the car, making it undrivable. However, the Chukma’s were not injured because they had Choctaw blankets wrapped around them. That, and Mr. Chukma dragged his family from the car in the nick of time and led them quickly to hide behind a giant boulder underneath one blanket.

The narrator asks if Naloosha Chitto looked for the family, and Uncle Kenneth confirms that the hairy man did, swinging at everything in front of him, even a tree where a mountain lion slept. Naloosha Chitto was so frightening, especially at midnight, that even the mountain lion ran away. Then everything grew still while Bigfoot, munching on a corncob, waited for the family to emerge.

Uncle Kenneth reminds Turtle Kid that he had not forgotten about the Bohpoli, who happened to show up in those Oklahoma mountains, floating above the trees, making chirping noises like birds. This angered Naloosha Chitto, so he threw his corncob at them and tried to climb the tree with his log, hoping to beat the birds down. The Bohpoli, however, tricked Naloosha Chitto into smashing the very tree limb he was standing on.

Uncle Kenneth pauses the story to tell the kids that he is not going to tell them that the hairy man fell to his death and that the Chukmas were fine. This encourages the narrator to ask what happens next. Uncle Kenneth responds that it could not be that simple if the Bohpoli are involved.

Back to the story, Uncle Kenneth reveals that while one Bohpoli was chirping like a bird, the others got extra Choctaw blankets from the destroyed Chukma car. So, when the Naloosha Chitto fell from the tree, the Bohpoli stretched out the blanket like a trampoline. At this point all the cousins are in disbelief, so Uncle Kenneth cuts the suspense by cracking a joke about the Bohpoli crossing the street without a crossing guard. The kids all laugh, and Uncle Kenneth continues with the story.

When Naloosha Chitto fell from the tree, be bounced off the blanket, but instead of dying, he bounced four times before landing sitting “Indian style” on the ground. When the kids ask their uncle what this means, he says “Indian style” is sitting in a chair. Apparently, the Bohpoli had also found a chair in the Chukmas’ car and set it out for Naloosha Chitto to land on.

Naloosha Chitto was so angry that he threw the chair so far it almost hit an airplane flying over Dallas. The Chukmas took this opportunity to run into the woods toward the state park, but the hairy giant heard them and followed, hot on their trail. However, the Bohpoli changed the direction of the arrows on the signs (contradicting the words). This sent Naloosha Chitto in the wrong direction, for he could not read.

Ultimately, the Chukmas made it to safety because they could read and conveniently had a state map, a camper’s manual, and a flashlight. They were welcomed into the rangers’ station at the state park headquarters. Even though their car was destroyed, insurance allowed the family to get a new minivan.

At this point, several kids, including Turtle Kid, start to question Uncle Kenneth. The narrator even communicates silently in Choctaw by covering their eyes and shaking their head, noting that their mom was right not to listen. A cousin named Keith asks about the altered signs confusing future campers. Uncle Kenneth calmly notes that the Bohpoli think of everything and returned the arrows to their correct position on the trail signs.

When cousin Cindy worries about Naloosha Chitto’s fate, Uncle Kenneth shares more. The Choctaw Bigfoot sprinted uphill, stopping at a cliff with a sign saying that it is unsafe to walk on the overlook. Uncle Kenneth reminds them that Naloosha Chitto could not read, so he ran out, the rock cracked, and he fell. Cousin Cindy is upset by this news, so Uncle Kenneth reassures her that all was well. On the lake below, rowing in a canoe, a group of anthropologists looked for proof of the existence of Naloosha Chitto. When they saw him fall from the sky, they jumped out of the canoe. This was convenient because that was where Naloosha Chitto landed and then rowed himself to safety.

The cousins pepper Uncle Kenneth with all sorts of questions about why the anthropologists would be in a canoe at midnight and what happened to those people. Turtle Kid sarcastically asks about the creamer the park ranger put in the Chukmas’ coffee. Uncle Kenneth shouts that the story is over. All the cousins clap and cheer Uncle Kenneth.

Before ending things, though, the older relative asks the kids what the Chukmas could do that saved their life. Turtle Kid plays up their uncle’s great story before jokingly revealing that the Chukmas could tie their shoes.

Uncle Kenneth ignores this and asks the group if there was anything else. Someone says they could read, which leads to more jokes about ketchup on books and the narrator’s mom saying again not to listen to their Uncle Kenneth. Turtle Kid thinks they see her smiling as she says this.

When the narrator asks Uncle Kenneth how he knows all this about Naloosha Chitto, he claims he knows not just about the Choctaw Bigfoot, but also important historical events like the Choctaw’s own Trail of Tears, code talkers, and more. He claims wryly that he learned to read before he learned to tie his shoelaces. The kids all enclose Uncle Kenneth with a hug.