Defining who we are by the objects we hold dear

Editor's note: Homeschool columnist Rose Godfrey is taking an extended “field trip” across the U.S. with her family. Here's the latest post from her www.homeschoolcorner.blogspot. com.

September 28, 2006 - Maybe it is because I have a lot of kids, but I found it easy to relate to the parents in the videos today when we visited the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum. I was often moved to tears, and my sentiments and thoughts were just as often interrupted by my younger children who had no concept of what we were doing in this place.

I wasn't sure how I should even feel about them being there. I did not want them to be disrespectful to the memories of those who were killed in the attack (on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in 1995), and they did not understand why everyone was so solemn. They sometimes ran over and were exuberant at buttons they could push. Other times, they were whiny and fussy that they couldn't do what they wanted.

We kept them in line as much as we could - Bella, at 6, is old enough to understand some of what she was seeing. I was frustrated that I could not spend more time focused on the information that was presented. I wanted to give each of the victims a moment of my time, to honor their memory in some small way.

I tried to block out the bickering. It is wearing after a while. I tried to look at it in a different perspective. For the parents who lost their children - children who would be about the age of my Alex and Alyona right now - I tried to imagine what they would trade for a chance to see them today.

Toward the end of the memorial, there is a room where there is a picture of each person who died in the attack on the Murrah Federal Building. Most pictures have a small object that the family of the victim selected. One child has a pacifier, another a favorite toy. One adult had a work ID, some had Bibles or plaques with favorite verses, others had sports items or stuffed animals.

It got me to thinking: If I had to pick something to represent my life, my passion, what would that one thing be? And if my family had to choose, what would they choose as the one object that defined who I am?

To learn more about the Oklahoma City bombing, visit http:// www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org.