Not really sure why I'm telling this in this thread other than it's a story I've wanted to tell. It haunts me.
My husband and I were driving cross-country with our dog in '05. We didn't have much time so any stops had to be right along our route. One of those, on our way back, was the OKC memorial. We didn't want to leave our dog in the car so when we went into the memorial site, we took turns.
Now, I didn't know much about the design of the site at the time. I thought the reflecting pool was the footprint of the building. I walked along the reflecting pool and thought about the building that *I thought* had stood there and the countless photos I had seen of the destruction. I reflected. About two thirds of the way up, I left the pool and crossed over to the side with the chairs. Shortly after crossing, I felt this blast (no other word to describe it) of pure evil.
I couldn't stand being there after that. I started walking really fast. Really, really fast. I told myself I was just hurrying because hubby and the dog were waiting for me but I felt panicky and disoriented. My husband said I was white as a sheet when I got back. I felt strange for hours afterwords. We stopped at a trading post and I swear, I was walking into walls and displays. We had to get out of there before I broke something.
That night, I looked up the OKC Memorial website and read more about it. I was surprised to read that the reflecting pool was not the footprint of the building as I had thought, but that the field of chairs was where the building had stood. Then I realized, by looking at the design and photos of the bombing, that the spot I was standing on when I felt that blast of evil was pretty much exactly at the site where the Ryder truck was parked. I swear, I have never felt anything as strong and sickening and evil as I did that day. It still gives me chills when I think about it.
= new reply since forum marked as read