This was my first trip to Oklahoma ever! (Can you believe that?!?) Since Stillwater is only about an hour away from Oklahoma City, we rented a car to drive there, but had some extra time on Saturday before the game that night. I had never seen the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial and Museum, so we decided that would be a great way to spend our time! If you haven't ever been to Oklahoma City to see this museum and memorial, I would highly recommend it, except it is quite a tear jerker, so don't forget your tissues! I was only 8 when this happened on April 19, 1995, but vaguely remember the events and headlines. 168 people were killed and that included 30 children that were in the daycare of this federal building. It was beautiful to see how something that was such a tragedy, meant to tear down and seperate, actually united a city and a country, and caused people to serve, help, and pray for others so selflessly! We saw and heard survivor's stories, accounts of the families that lost loved ones, detailed desriptions about that day's shocking events, the investigation and trial of Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols (the bombers), etc...We spent over 2 hours there, and actually could have spent more because it was so in depth! Like I said, if you haven't ever been, I would recommend seeing it sometime for sure! I didn't get to take pictures in the museum, but got to snap some outside, where the memorial was. I will try to provide a little description, but remember, the pictures don't really do it justice.
This tree was in the parking lot right beside the building and was called the "Survivor Tree"...somehow it survived the bombing and still stands as a reminder. Tons of rubble and glass were blown into it, but it still stood. And the building behind it is actually where the museum is. The windows were all blown out by the force of the bomb, and now are mostly replaced by black brick.
These chairs are monuments for each of those who past away in the terrible event. The glass parts are engraved with their names...The chairs are placed where the building was, and the are arranged by the floor the person worked on (there were 9 floors in the building).
The "reflecting pool" is in the place where the street ran. They lowered the ground 11 feet to place the memorial. The structure on one side reads "9:01" the other, "9:03". The bombing happened at 9:02 in the morning. So you can infer the symbolism.
No comments:
Post a Comment