Of course it's wonderful to spend time with people that you love and enjoy being around. But it's more than that. Those of us who move around a bit have fractured lives; each new residence has new people, places, activities, issues, much of which isn't really connected to any earlier time or place. When you've left pieces of your self/life scattered across the country, constants or moments of integration can be really comforting--you know, looking at pictures and remembering how it felt to live in that room (to paraphrase an author whose name I can't remember), or reading through papers written by your former scholarly self and remembering that you were such a person.
So imagine how much better it is to have living, breathing people who also happen to be the fundamental constant from the beginning of your life--your parents--come be a part of your current life, if only for a few days. To see the home you've created for yourselves, and to approve. It's pretty great.
They flew in to OKC Tuesday night and met us at the hotel. OKC is two hours away, after all, and by staying overnight we could go to the temple in the evening and then see the Bombing Memorial the next morning. That memorial museum is pretty powerful. Seems like any museum is a combination of information and experience, with the emphasis tilting either way depending on the purpose. In a memorial like this the information is mostly a tool to take you through an experience. Some of us cried all the way through it.
After recovering from travel on Thursday, Friday we explored the town. Well, through his walking Dad explored the town quite thoroughly. But we also went to the Marlan Mansion, our own version of Hearst Castle: a local (obscenely rich) oilman fell in love with lavish villas while on vacation in Italy, then came home and built one for himself. You walk around the ornate furnishings, grand salons, and extensive private apartments and think, "What the heck is this doing in a little out-of-the-way town in Oklahoma?" Then we went to the Standing Bear museum and learned about the six closest tribes, a little of their culture and sad history. It was a full day, so we went to dinner (at the restaurant the company always takes the people they're recruiting).
Saturday and Sunday was Conference, which it sounds like you all enjoyed as much as we did. Between sessions on Saturday, we decided to leave the house (which was making us feel too cooped up), went to a park by the lake (which was too windy), and finally ate our picnic snacks at another park by a little stream (which was just right). And on Sunday we had dinner with the Meldrums, so Mom and Dad got to meet some of our favorite people.
Monday I drove them to the airport, where they set off for even more adventures.
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