“We come here to remember…
Written: Jun 04 '00 (Updated Jun 04 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: A fitting memorial to those who died and survived
Cons: The fact that it had to be built at all
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| saprswife's Full Review: Oklahoma City |
…those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever. May all who leave here know the impact of violence. May this memorial offer comfort, strength, peace, hope, and serenity.”
- Carved on the Gates of Time at the OKC National Memorial
The largest act of domestic terrorism in our nation’s history haunts the lives of many and will be etched in thousands of people’s minds forever. The moment I found out about the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City is something I will never forget…
My husband and I had recently moved to Colorado Springs. One early morning in our new apartment I walked into our den, the morning light streaming in through the blinds. I flipped on the TV to see scenes of smoke, a decimated building, and people, covered in blood, stumbling among the rubble rushing down streets. I thought, surely, this was a building halfway around the world – maybe Britain or France. Unfortunately, it was deep in our own nations’ heartland.
Not Oklahoma, I thought. Not the place where I went to high school and for a brief time called home. I then feared, albeit a bit irrationally, for my parents who at the time live in Tulsa. They traveled a lot due to business – what if they were there or in the proximity? Fortunately, they were safe at home, but so many were not so lucky…
My brother recently married in Oklahoma City, and I knew the Oklahoma City National Memorial was a place my husband and I wanted to visit, a place we needed to visit.
It was a warm day in May, just over a month since the memorial first opened on the fifth anniversary of the bombing. We drove the short distance from the hotel to downtown and circled the memorial before finding a parking spot amidst a crowd of cars with license plates from all over the US and Canada.
Just from looking at the memorial I can envision where the building once stood and the terror that consumed it. Immediately upon exiting our car my husband’s and my hands join in a fierce grip, and our moods become subdued as we cross the street to enter this hallowed ground.
We enter the memorial through a large wall on which 9:03 engraved along with the saying that began this piece. The chain link fence that encompassed the destruction of the bombing flanks the Gate of Time on either side with items placed into its framework – poems, pictures, memorials to loved ones. A stuffed lion with a Marine Corps patch and Semper fi bumper sticker secured around his neck. Children’s photos with notes attached. Flowers and wreaths. People gingerly fingered the items as if they were sacred.
As we enter through the gate we come upon the reflecting pool where 5th Street once lay. The exact place where five years ago a moving van full of explosives parked. It is a long, shallow pool, and at its end lies the other Gate on which 9:01 is carved. These two gates frame the moment of destruction, 9:02.
We slowly make our way around the reflecting pool to the children’s area. Handpainted tiles painstakingly made by children adorn the area, and large chalkboards held drawings that a few visiting children had just created.
For such a large crowd it is unnaturally quiet. The Survivor Tree along with many younger saplings sway gently in the May breeze. A police siren sounds in the distance, quickly passes the memorial, and then fades.
People in small groups murmur quietly to one another, their voices scarcely above a whisper. Silent tears are wept as some looked into the reflecting pool or gaze upon the Survivor Tree.
The nearby buildings still show the scars of that day. Glass is still missing from the windows and one can see where bits of concrete are missing from the walls.
Where the Murrah building once stood there are now 168 chairs in a field of green, one chair for each victim of the bombing, forever reminders of the lives lost. The chairs are placed in nine rows to represent the nine floors of the building. The chairs, engraved with each victim’s name, are placed according to the floor on which they died. Spread throughout the larger chairs are their smaller counterparts for the 19 children. An angel teddy bear sits in one of the empty chairs.
On one side of the Field of Empty chairs stands the only remaining portion of the Murrah building. On it is a plaque carved with all the survivor names. A friend of my mom’s is listed on this plaque. I search for her name while others search for the names their friends and loved ones.
People from all walks of life wander the memorial – men and women, young and old, tourists and those who call OKC home. All here for a common purpose: to honor those that died and those that survived.
For a moment, during a time of what is to be a joyous occasion, my husband and I stand among people all brought together to remember, reflect, and heal. We will never forget the destruction, and those that perished will remain in our hearts forever.
For more information or to donate to the Memorial please visit or call:
http://www.oklahoman.net/connections/memorial
1-888-542-HOPE
The Oklahoma City National Memorial is located in downtown OKC between Harvey and Robinson Avenues and 4th and 6th Streets.
All moneys made from this review are to be donated to the National Memorial Fund
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
saprswife
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Location: Washington State
Reviews written: 75
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