Last Friday …

I arrived in Oklahoma City for a weekend with a group of Methodist social justice activists. It happened to be the anniversary of the bombing there, and was also a day of drama in Boston as the marathon bombers were being apprehended. My host, Mark, showed me the memorial site of the tragic bombing that occurred there in 1995. (The first and third images below are architectural models, not photographs.)

It was a moving experience to walk between the 9:01 and 9:03 walls, experiencing the space of 9:02 (the minute when the bombing happened), seeing the chairs representing the children who were lost to the senseless violence.

A tree survived the bombing, and it was showing new spring growth. Saplings grown from its seeds have been spread through the state of Oklahoma, each a sign of resilience and hope.