Being an Oklahoman...

Rodgers and Hammerstein described my home as a place where there's plenty of room to swing a rope, with plenty of heart and plenty of hope. 

If you are a native Oklahoman, you understand the spirit of the people here. Maybe you are descended from one of the many tribes of "red people", for whom our state is named, that made their way to this land by surviving the tragic Trail of Tears. 

Or perhaps your ancestors were among the 50,000 who made their way to Indian Territory in April of 1889 to start a new life of adventure by running in a race for land.

You may even come from a line of people who came West to farm our rich soil and endured the Dust Bowl....

Or came here in search of black gold beneath the soil...

No matter how you came to be born here, it can definitely be said that courage, resolve, and resilience run deep within our veins. And there is a pride in living here like none I have ever seen. Whether it is being compelled to stand and clap and sing when hearing the song "Oklahoma", or explaining the meaning of the word "Sooner" to an outsider. ( from Wikipedia: A number of the people who participated in the land run entered the unoccupied land early and hid there until the legal time of entry to lay quick claim to some of the most choice homesteads. These people came to be identified as "Sooners." ) We have a rich heritage and a colorful and exciting history that defines us. We are overcomers in a state that was born out of great adversity. Maybe this can explain a lot about what people are seeing in our state since the tornado struck Moore on Monday. 

We are famously known as the place where the "wind comes sweeping down the plain".  Monday afternoon of May 20, 2013 brought a cruel wind that left behind a wake of death and destruction. Utter devastation is one way to describe it. Where does a community even begin to pick up the pieces? I heard our Governor say that the very first place to start was having to just put the names of the streets back up, because people couldn't even find where they lived or where their businesses were located, due to the streets and signs being wiped clean like a slate. Imagine no street signs or house numbers!

My heart and stomach were sick as I watched the Weather Channel's live broadcast of the monstrous black wedge approaching the town of Moore yet again. The images of the aftermath still leave me in shock and disbelief that it could be real. So much loss. So much sorrow. So much to overcome. But, as Rodgers and Hammerstein said, we are a people with plenty of heart and plenty of hope. This is when America sees Oklahoma at her finest and most admirable. Whether it is teachers shielding their students' little bodies, first responders digging through rubble through the night, local churches setting up as command centers, or just people feeling they must do something, so they donate to the many charities that are on the scene, THESE are the people of Oklahoma:

But if there is one thing that defines us as a people, I believe it is that we are a people of faith. Faith, plus hard work and resilience have gotten Oklahomans through many tragic times from the Dust Bowl, to the dark April day in 1995 when our State Capitol saw unspeakable evil bring down our Federal Building,

to the ravages of numerous tornadoes. We have been knocked down into the red dirt too many times to count, but there is a determination here that shows the world that you can't lick us. We always seem to come back stronger and even more resolved than ever. Remember, it is in our Sooner red blood and our DNA. Our heritage has made us strong. We are the sons and daughters of those who tamed the West. We are Oklahoma.

Firsts and Lasts

I remember the fall of 1998. 

We took a 4 year old little boy to his first day of Pre-K at Rock Creek Elementary School in Blue, Oklahoma. He was enrolled in the headstart program at the beginning, but when we found out our picky eater was not going to be able to bring his own lunch from home, we knew THAT would not work out, so he was moved over to the regular pre-K class where his selective palate would not be subjected to lunchroom cuisine.

Kindergarten started a new and exciting 4 year adventure in Whitewright, TX, where we have fond memories of Kindergarten Rodeo, school friends ( forever remembered as his "posse" ), church musicals, learning to play the drums,  seemingly never-ending fights with big sister, AND becoming a big brother! 

After Texas, this ministry family headed to the big city of New York where we soon learned that home school was where our school memories would be made. Our desk was the kitchen table and our playground was the Big Apple and surrounding area, where we took many unforgettable field trips to the beach, our first tour of a lighthouse, Wall Street, Broadway, and even the legendary Sleepy Hollow up the Hudson River.

Our next move was south...The OLD South to be exact. We were located just a few miles down the Savannah River from historic Savannah Georgia. Public school was again part of our lives, which aren't Jarrett's fondest memories of Georgia. But the friends we made there and the adventures we had are the basis of many happy memories made, including friends and family coming to visit us and getting to show them the sights. We had Independence Day fireworks at the beach, fresh-made candy on River Street, and one of our favorite memories was getting to go watch the dolphins on Captain Mike's Dolphin Tour! 

 

The next stop on our journey is where we once called home, and now we call it home again: Oklahoma. Back with family and friends and familiar roads where we don't need maps or the GPS. It is where Jarrett has spent his last 6 years of school days at Cottonwood Elementary and Coalgate High School. SO many friends and memories have been made here. This was where a boy became a man, traveling overseas twice doing mission work, enduring the hardships of losing cherished childhood friends, and working hard and earning the money to buy his first car. 

What prompts me to write this blog post today is that this morning that picky-eating little boy who had to take his own lunch to pre-k walked out the door to his last day of High School. His days of school plays, Friday night football games with friends, and meeting at the flag pole every Wednesday to pray, along with the mosaic of all his school experiences are now behind him. Friday night he will walk across a stage with an honors sash around his neck and a diploma in his hand, ready to move on to more adventures and to make more memories. The time has seemingly evaporated into this day. I know living the life of a preacher's kid has not always been easy, but I also know it has not been boring or ordinary.  And he, also, is neither boring nor ordinary. This life has prepared him to be able to take on what comes next. I am confident that he is ready. Soon will be his own apartment and his college days, and showing others Christ along the way.

And I'm sure there will be care packages full of Doritos and Spaghettios on the way! I love you Jarrett Skyler Self! Have the life you have!! ;) I will be nearby with a camera, as always!

Jarrett Self

Coalgate High School

Class of 2013