A lone tree stands at the memorial in Oklahoma City—The Survivor Tree—a mighty elm that lived through the blast of the 1995 bombing of the Federal building. At first, people thought the tree was lifeless with shards of debris, glass, as well as other wreckage from the discharge deeply embedded in its hundred year-old trunk.
But still the tree still lived.
It thrived.
It became a monument to which millions have flocked to over the years and have gained strength from.
The inscription nearby reads:
The spirit of this city and this nation will not be defeated; our deeply rooted faith sustains us.
I leafed through the letters as I read over their sage advice, gleaned over the span of nine months—gestation enough for rebirth—and smiled at their writing which was sometimes humorous, often serious, and always valuable.
This year I dedicated a portion of my classroom—for a little while—to become ‘The Survivor Wall’ in honor of those students who made it out with their sanity intact—in other words—all of them.
Did you take a photo in the past seven days that made you smile? Please feel free to include a link to the image in the comments section if you did...or, use the linky below.
Willing to share the Weekly Kodachrome on your own blog? If so, feel free to grab the code here
11 comments:
Love your wall idea!
I met a teacher yesterday that has her students write a letter to the their teacher for next year - anything they think the teacher should know about them. She delivers the letters go the students to give out on the first day of the year.
I love your idea - very creative. I have no doubt that your classroom is full of amazing ideas!
Thank you for using our tree (it belongs to all Oklahomans)in you analogy.
Gosh...you learn something new everyday! How neat!
Great idea, TF. I may have to stop in just to read a few...
Words of advice. I like that.
One Word: Awesome
I commented. So there.
I didn't know about the tree - that is neat.
I don't have a picture this week - DAng!
This was so good.
LOVE the post. Love the sentiment.
LOVE your i heart faces post. You are a super star. XO
I'm back to browse again, like I said I would, and I just had to leave another comment. Did you know I'm from Oklahoma City? Did you see my Bombing Memorial photos on my blog sidebar or in my Picasa album? You can see the survivor tree in a couple of them. Check them out if you haven't. Anyway, it sure is a small world. Maybe I'll participate in this weekly Kodachrome sometime. I think the wall idea was great! Well, have a great evening!
Post a Comment