We’re driving into the countryside when Howlin’ Wolf begins crooning over the radio. Blues night on KSYM, San Antonio’s college station. The further we move from the orange hue of the city lights, the darker it becomes.

The frequency flickers. I look down to change the dial.

A deer appears.

R.J. Stanford is a former student of Southwest Texas Junior College. He holds a lifetime membership to Sigma Tau Delta. Career-wise, the author is working toward an English professorship. He and his wife reside in Hondo, Texas. Follow him on Twitter at @byRJStanford.