March 29, 2008 - Oklahoma City

Hello all. We are in Oklahoma City, OK. We did some sightseeing today. We, of course, wanted to see the site of the Oklahoma City bombing of the Federal Building. I thought it would be no big deal - just a spot that I heard a lot about in the news. I did not know anyone who was killed or injured or anyone who knows anyone who was killed or injured. But, it was a very emotional visit. I don't know how to describe the setting to you, but I have some pictures that may help. I think what got me most was that on the corner across the street from the site of the bombing, they have erected a statue of Christ with his hand up to his brow and at the foot of the statue they have engraved " Jesus Wept". It really got to me.

Along the street before you go into the memorial area is a fence and people have hung personal items on the fence in honor of the victims. There are two very high walls at each end of the memorial. The wall at one end with the time of 9:01 engraved in it and another at the other end with the time of 9:03 engraved. The bomb went off at 9:02. The significance of 9:01 is it was a time of innocence and by 9:03 that innocence was gone and nothing would ever be the same.

The memorial area itself includes not only where the Federal building once stood, but the road that used to run along side the building. There is a reflecting pond that goes the entire length of the memorial field. Where the Federal building once stood, there are chairs for each victim. The chairs are a glass square with a light inside and the victims name engraved in the glass. The chair backs are bronze. The chairs for the children killed are smaller that those for the adults killed. The chairs are in rows and the rows represent the floors of the Federal building. The victims' chairs are on the row representing the floor each was on when the bomb went off.

What I found to be most inspiring was the respect everyone in the memorial area showed to the victims of this horrible event. Everyone, young and old, were very quiet when inside the memorial area.


After visiting the memorial, we spent time driving around the downtown area. We saw the business area and also an area called Bricktown where they city fathers have updated a lot of old brick building and built a ball park. There are lots of shops and restaurants in the buildings and people were walking around on a Saturday. It looks like the area is drawing people downtown . Another attraction to the downtown area is a very pretty canal that runs through the downtown area. There are walkways and bridges and plants that remind me a lot of the Riverwalk in San Antonio, TX. Another interesting thing about Oklahoma City is the government buildings including the capitol building are not in the downtown business area. They are set out a ways from downtown and there is a lot of space around them. Looks like someone did some smart planning when they planned this city.

I have a cousin who settled in Oklahoma City around 1986. He moved here from Indiana. I actually got to know him when Mike and I lived in IN. He is quite a bit older than me and I he had moved to Indiana when I was very young. Anyway, I called him to see if it was ok for Mike and I to visit him. I was hesitant to call him because his wife of almost 60 years passed away about a month ago. But, I did call and he was very excited to hear from me and wanted Mike and I to visit him and meet his kids who were just very young children the last time we saw them. My cousin lives in a suburb of Ok City called Mustang. Mike and I drove out there and we were very impressed with the entire area. It is an area that is growing rapidly. There are lots of new home areas and new businesses. The homes are mostly one story, but they have very tall roofs and all are brick or brick and stone. The prices of the homes are very reasonable. I can see why people would want to live here.

Today, Sunday the 30th, my cousin took Mike and I to see where my aunt and her husband lived in Midwest City before they died. We went to see where they were buried and then he took us to visit the Cowboy Museum. The museum was great. Mike really enjoyed it. I think he could have stayed all day. I enjoyed it too, but cowboys and Indians are not my thing. I did enjoy seeing the paintings and the bead work.

This afternoon, we are getting the RV ready to go over to the repair shop in the morning. We have a wheel bearing that needs to be replaced and we need to be the first in line at the repair shop. It is a "first come-first serve" place. If we get the RV fixed early, we will head out tomorrow. If not, we will spend one more night here in Oklahoma City. Either way, we are still having a good trip.

Hope you enjoy the pictures.