Haunting images from OKC

August 7, 2005

Okay, so it’s been more than a week since my initial entry. I’m still trying to get the hang of this blog thing. Maybe I’ll have shorter entries… I guess it doesn’t have to be something profound every time I make a submission, does it? (I know, I know… one has to say something profound once before one can say something profound every time, right?)

Yesterday, I went to the Oklahoma City Memorial, the site of the Murrah Federal Building where the terrorist bombing occurred on April 19, 1995. A breathtaking experience.

I had been to the site in October of 1996, 18 months afterward. At that point, the rubble from the Federal Building had been removed and a lawn planted in its place, but many of the surrounding buildings, damaged beyond repair, had yet to be torn down. It was eerie to see offices blown in half, the desks still visible inside.

Now, the site is at once both stirring and calming. The damaged buildings are gone. The street has been removed, a reflecting pool now in its place. On the lawn are metal chair-shaped memorials, one for each person who died in the blast; the smaller ones represent the children who perished.

On the opposite side of the street is a large tree—prior to the blast, the tree had been surrounded by a parking lot, and when the bombing occurred, the tree was stripped clean of its branches. Slowly, it recovered, and it now stands large, lush with leaves, a symbol of perseverance. Seedlings have been taken from the tree and planted in the hometown of each of the bombing victims.

The most striking elements of the memorial are the Gates of Time—large, black, square walls at each end of the memorial where the street has been blocked off. On one wall, it reads “9:01”. On the other, it reads “9:03”.

The blast occurred at 9:02 a.m.

One of the memorable images from a decade ago remains—they have left a portion of the chain link fence in place, and visitors still attach messages of sorrow and hope, teddy bears for the children, and random mementos. Periodically, these items are taken off, catalogued, and, where appropriate, given to those in need. (The teddy bears are cleaned and given to children at local hospitals.)

I haven’t made time to visit the adjacent museum, which, I’m told, is very well done. Perhaps when the Beavers return here in 2007.

-- Rich