I'm rather glad that I'm doing this blog in retrospective mode. I chuckle over some of my journal entries, and I'm not the least bit sorry that I didn't take time away from the enjoyment of each day to detail each sight and download each picture. Now I have more time to reflect and savor the entire experience, and writing this blog is allowing me the pleasure of reliving one of the most satisfying travel opportunites I have ever had.
I was chuckling to myself over the first line of today's journal entry because it begins, "We had breakfast at Cracker Barrel, and I had Uncle Hershel's breakfast." Need I say more? I remember watching Regis and Kelly shortly after Kelly Ripa had discovered Cracker Barrel. She loved it; in fact, she adored it. She said if she had known about them earlier, she would have had her entire wedding reception there. We Southern folks know the delights of Cracker Barrel, and the WOW girls stopped at a few before we headed out west.
We arrived in Dallas and drove through the city, following the guidance of my Tom-Tom, which led us right to the parking lot next to the museum. This museum was one of Kristee's top three choices, but once again, all four of us were taken in by the history and painstaking detail given to this memorial to the late president. We made a smart move in renting the headphones which give you the audio tour; the authentic voices of the president, Walter Cronkites, and many others added so much to the experience. If you're not familiar with this museum, this is a must see for students of American history. The museum is the site of Lee Harvey Oswald's hiding place in the Texas Book Depository, the place from which he assassinated President John F. Kennedy, and it is very professionally done. It really brought back moments from my childhood, as I am old enough to remember the principal's voice over the loudspeaker telling us that our president had been shot. Watching the videos and exhibits in the museum made me feel like I was 10 years old again, sitting in front of my TV while little John John Kennedy saluted his father's casket. Far from macabre or sleazy, this memorial is a fitting tribute to the 1960's, the people, the president, and those who loved America during the age of Camelot.
We made tracks for Oklahoma City, Kristee's third choice, the site of the bombing of the federal building. People told us to be sure to see the outside of the memorial at night, so we ate supper at Abuelo's a great Mexican restaurant, and went to the memorial afterwards. Everything about the memorial is symbolic of something from that day, the small chairs represent the children, the larger ones represent the adults. They are placed in areas according to the floors on which they were found. Each chair is lit and the whole reflecting pool is lit, and the glow gives an other-wordly effect. I was moved to tears in the face of so much grief, when my own grief for my daughter seemed still so fresh and painful. We are coming back in the morning to tour the inside, but seeing this outside memorial at night has set the stage for what is to come. What a beautiful tribute to the innocents of Oklahoma City. I wish I had pictures of the memorial at night, but my camera was giving me trouble that night.
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