O-K-C!
About a week ago I got a text from Stiles telling me to do some creative scheduling because he had managed to get his hands on 2 OKC Thunder playoff tickets. It was almost too easy to get the time off work. And on a side note: I'm thrilled to be away from work as much as possible these days.
We were some of the first people into the arena before the game started and the energy was crazy. People dancing at the top of the escalator's high-5-ing everyone, music blaring. A t-shirt on every single chair in the house. The game started out rocky, but soon enough it was raining 3's. Every time a shot swished in, the place erupted. Though it was a little brutal to be at the game so late, it was quite an experience. Not only my first Thunder game, but my first professional sporting event, period. The cheering and excitement carried over as people walked to their parking spots. A random guy with a saxophone under a bridge played some theme music and the cheers echoed as we walked through. There were banners, flags, and people in Thunder blue sporadically everywhere we went. The people of OKC love this team, and are proud of their success.
Wednesday we browsed a record store unlike any we have in Wichita then headed into Bricktown and ended up having lunch at The Wedge. I was browsing Urban Spoon but nothing seemed too promising. We had stumbled on the Wedge a couple years ago when roaming around before the Elton John/Billy Joel concert. It had closed moments before we got there. I'm so glad he remembered it! They have a garden in front of the building where they literally grow their vegetables and herbs. And the food was yum-o.
And remember when I made that post about how I've never been inside to check out the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum? Well, we went there too. The grounds are sorrowful, yes. But they also emit a sense of peace, hope, healing, and love. You feel an undeniable urge to show respect. There's a whole section in front of the building constructed of tiles that were made and sent by children. The stuff about and from the children really effected me most. I think it's just because kids lives are so innocent. For the most part, they don't know how horrible human beings can be. And they don't know what "terrorism" really means and even I (at 27 years old) have a hard time grasping an attack that came from a fellow American. We took our time exploring and easily spent 2+ hours inside. It was rough and overwhelming at times. My final straw came toward the end with the story of 1,000 golden cranes and then in another room, a letter from a 6-year old girl. It's one of the many that came in the aftermath. I believe the little girl's name was Kaitlynn and she wrote and spelled a note as best she could, "Sorry for what happened here is my phone number in case you need someone to talk to." There are boxes of kleenex available all over the museum for this very reason.
There is an elm tree on the grounds that stood nearby the bombing site. In the aftermath, most of it's leafy top was destroyed and it's bark was charred. The tree was not a cleanup priority. It was merely something cosmetic to deal with much later. Soon after though, it started to rebound. New branches emerged from the trunk and today it stands tall and healthy overlooking the reflection pool. It withstood the violence and now symbolizes resilience. The inscription in the wall that surrounds the tree sums it up very nicely: The spirit of this city and this nation will not be defeated; our deeply rooted faith sustains us.
As you can see, this "weekend" had some crazy emotional highs and lows...but I loved every second. I'm incredibly lucky to have a friend with the same interest and desire to have these kinds of experiences. Turning my many, "I'd like to to do this and want go there and see that..." into a reality.