aliens – Retirementally Challenged

When we were planning our recent coast-to-coast road trip, we had some “must-sees” along the way and a few hard arrival dates that we needed to hit. Mostly, though, we drove for as long as we felt like it and stopped where it looked interesting. In reviewing the sketched-out itinerary that I put together before we left, it’s apparent that a lot of our “plans” were just “suggestions.”

Roswell, New Mexico

Our first of many unplanned stops was in Roswell, New Mexico. I didn’t know much about this city but, like probably many of you, I associated it with UFOs and aliens. With all the crazy conspiracy theories floating around today, the one surrounding an alleged UFO crash in 1947 and a subsequent military cover-up seems rather quant. (The googles has more information about the incident – that did or did not happen – if you care to go down that wormhole.)

Anyway, like any self-respecting business community, Roswell has fully embraced its unique distinction. While the extraterrestrial spacecraft and captured aliens may – or may not – have been just a figment of a wild imagination, little green men can be found everywhere on the streets of downtown Roswell.

This guy may have had a bit too many cosmo-politans.

Oklahoma City

A much darker reminder of the danger of unhinged conspiracy theories and disturbed thinking was found at our next stop.

The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum honors the victims, survivors, rescuers, and all who were affected by the domestic terrorist bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. On April 19, 1995, 168 people, including 19 children, lost their lives because of hate. The Memorial symbolizes the turning away from hate and towards finding strength and hope in a wake of unspeakable violence.

I had no idea how impactful the Memorial would be. Just the day before we arrived, there was a ceremony commemorating the 29^th anniversary of that terrible day. On the day we visited, the grounds were mostly deserted and peaceful, a place of quiet reflection.

At each end of the reflecting pond stands a large bronze-clad monument, the Gates of Time that, together, frame the moment of destruction. One, the 9:01 Gate, represents the moment before the attack. The other, the 9:03 Gate, symbolizes the moment healing began. Off to one side is the Field of Empty Chairs. Each of the 168 chairs is engraved with a victim’s name, underlining the magnitude of the loss.

Looking towards the 9:01 Gate. Note the Field of Chairs to the right.

All of the chairs had been decorated the day before for the ceremony. The chairs of the 19 children killed were especially heartbreaking.

We first visited the Memorial in the daylight. On the advice of a security guard, we returned that evening to see the displays beautifully illuminated.

I’ll end this post with the words engraved on each Gate. They are a reminder that violence arising from hate never solved anything. It’s up to all of us to choose the path we want to take going forward:

We come here to remember

Those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever.

May all who leave here know the impact of violence.

May this memorial offer comfort, strength, peace, hope and serenity.

I have had a photograph sitting in my archives for a few years, with vague plans to share it in some future Thursday Doors post. When I read that Dan Antion (No Facilities) had created a Writing Challenge based on door images, I figured this would be a good time.

Writing Challenge, you ask? Yes – Dan, the keeper of all things Thursday Doors, came up with the brilliant idea of having door photographers provide inspiration for writers.

I found this door about three years ago while on an artists’ studio tour in Southern California’s high desert, not too far from Joshua Tree National Park. It was on property owned by artist Snake Jagger, who often includes a door very much like this – standing slightly ajar, alone in the distance – in his whimsical surreal landscapes. I love that he built a three-dimensional door that looks just like the doors in his paintings. The structure is no deeper than a sheet of wood. The illusion of depth is created with perspective.

Please join in!

If you want to participate as a photographer: create your own Thursday Doors post and share your images. Be sure to link to Dan’s post.

If you want to participate as a writer: plan to post your door-inspired writing on your blog anytime between now and May 29^th. (I’d be thrilled if you used my door as inspiration but, if space aliens or portals to other worlds aren’t your thing and you’d like to select another door, there will be plenty of others to choose from.) Include a link to Dan’s site and attribute the door image to the photographer.

If you want to participate both as a photographer and a writer: get busy!

For more specific information about how to participate in the challenge, please read Dan’s original announcement.

Tag: aliens

From Silly to Solemn

Thursday Doors: Interplanetary Portal