Discovering Oklahoma City

It’s funny. You can live in Oklahoma City, or anywhere for that matter, for your whole life and never fully experience all it has to offer. After completing my first year of college, I have been enlightened again and again by new friends from all over the US that I have to see more, do more, and go more places. My new goal is simple: make each day an adventure, whether it be spent in my hometown or somewhere exotic and halfway across the world. Thanks to Sooner Discovery, I have gotten a little bit closer to accomplishing this life-long goal.

To put the icing on top of a perfect first week of the program, we took our first Saturday trip to Oklahoma City on June 13^th. Needless to say, it was a blast. Our first stop was a place that has been near and dear to my heart since I was about nine years old- the Oklahoma Science Museum (previously known as the Omniplex). I had just as much fun, if not more, as I did back then when I came with my 4^th grade class for a field trip. It was funny seeing the museum differently as an adult; everything was a lot smaller than it had been before, but the science behind it seemed more fascinating to learn about than ever. There were two activities in particular I really enjoyed: 1. Watching Journey to Space in the dome theater 2. Seeing a presentation of Tonight’s Sky in the planetarium. The whole group thought both shows were fantastic, and they definitely heightened my interest in our gigantic, mysterious solar system.

 

Our next stop of the day was the Oklahoma City Memorial Museum downtown. Before today, I wouldn’t have considered myself someone to particularly enjoyed visiting museums. But this was no ordinary museum, and I was immediately hooked from the moment we walked inside. We got the chance to walk through the entire storyline from start to finish, experiencing just a piece of the horror that happened on that day. We heard several audio and video clips from the moment the bomb went off, the panic and chaos that it ensued, news channels reporting what was happening, and then firsthand stories from victims and their loved ones. This place truly touched my heart through its dedication to honor the victims of the April 19^th, 1995 bombing of the Murrah building. Even as a resident of OKC my entire life, I had never gotten to hear the full story of that day or learn about its effect on our state and our country. Today I learned of the love Oklahomans have for one another and their incredible willingness to help those in need, no matter who they are or where they are from. Oklahomans have a sense of community that can rarely be found elsewhere, and I am so proud to live in a state and to go to a university that highly values such admirable principles.

 

On a lighter note, our final stop was the perfect ending to a wonderful day. We got to attend a Dodger’s game at the ballpark. For lack of more sophisticated terms: It was so much fun!! We ate, we laughed, we watched America’s favorite pastime, we sang, we threw giant marshmallows in the air, and most of all we enjoyed each other’s company. This was the first time I got to see the students laugh and get to know each other so openly, and what a more perfect time than an evening of summer baseball? In case you’re as competitive as I am and you’re wondering how the game turned out, we beat the Nashville Sounds 6-4. How ‘bout a victory to end such an awesome day?

 

Kooper T

International Business

And Spanish, 2017

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma