Tulsa Street Stories: The mystic sound of the center of the universe

By Elise McGouran

The center of the echo chamber

I'm alone as I approach the middle of the bridge. It's not very well kept, and certainly not what I expected it to be. The bridge is suspended over train tracks that run through Downtown. There are cigarette butts lying in holes where bricks were dug up for souvenirs. A plastic spoon has been left on one of the flower planters and graffiti litters the ground. One visitor has left his immortal stamp in the words, 'Steven Tyler Rocks the Universe'.

I walk to the center and wonder what I should say, a bit underwhelmed. The sky is clear, and there's sweat rolling down my back. "Sing!" a voice says. I turn and see there's a woman walking towards me, radiating all kinds of sass. "Come on, honey, why don't you sing?"

Why not?

Alright, I decide, something happy. Except that's not what comes out.

I make a pretty sad Fantine (and not in a good way), but the acoustics that make up the echo chamber I'm in soothe a lot of mistakes, and my attempt at I Dreamed a Dream doesn't sound so bad with the sound of my voice reverberating around me. "Wow," she says, "listen to her go! She can sing! Guys, I cannot make this stuff up!" I notice now that she has her phone trained in my direction, videotaping my impromptu performance. I stop.

Her name is Monia. She's been making a live Facebook video and is absolutely ecstatic about our meeting. She leaves after a few moments, still filming. "Didn't I tell you? I cannot make this stuff UP!"

After Monia there comes a pair of girls. One's from out of town and her friend is showing her around. I take their picture. The out-of-towner screams when it's her turn in the center. They laugh and squeal and generally have a ball.

After them, two middle-aged women and an older man make their way across the bridge. They're from California originally and have lived in Tulsa for a year and a half now. "It's not what I expected," the man comments. One of the women tries to video the cavernous effect, but it doesn't take. "I guess you just have to be here," she sighs.

A couple comes with their dog. "Just do it!" the man says. "But why?" his date pouts. "Because - cute couple stuff, that's why!" She sticks her tongue and hands out rocker-style as he takes her picture. They try to experiment with the dog, see how it would react, but it just sits there, panting. "Of course, the only time she's quiet." They laugh.

Another couple arrives not too long after the last group has all left. They're from Ohio, "just passing through." Each visitor delights in testing the serendipitous architectural formation.

Before I leave a lone man walks up; driver's cap on his head and a messenger bag slung over his shoulder. He stands in the center.