The Spirit of Oklahoma

[Brother Bob]

This forum has a plethora of folks from Oklahoma. Oklahoma has a rich heritage and possesses some of the friendliest and hardest-working folks you'll find. Even though the weather can be frightening at times, the people of this fine state weather the storms and come together as one to help each other out when Mother Nature shows her fury or when terrorists attempt to destroy our buildings, lives and way of life. Norman, Oklahoma was voted the 6th best city to live in recently and I'm proud to call Norman my home. If they could just do something about that wind! LOL! Whether it be a terrorist blowing up the Alfred P. Murrah building and sending 168 people, including 19 children, to heaven or an F-5 tornado ripping through Bridge Creek, Moore, Oklahoma City, and Del City, Okies rolled up their sleeves and got busy helping their neighbors and rebuilding their own lives and homes. There was no scenes of angry people or looting in the aftermath. They placed a chain-link fence around what was left of the Alfred P. Murrah building and attached to the fence was cards, money, Teddy Bears and such. No one dared take any of the items. It was sacred and hallowed ground and even the Feds couldn't believe how well they were treated as they combed the wreckage for evidence and clues. BATFE, CIA, and FBI agents along with OKC police were fed home-cooked meals by women that set up grills and such outside the perimeter.
Oklahoma's landscape ranges from grassland to mountains and forest. Oklahoma has an abundance of rivers and lakes, also. A lot of the cities and towns are named after Native Americans or have Native American meanings. The name, Oklahoma, is a Choctaw word meaning, "Red People".
About every 1st of September, college football comes to Norman and Stillwater. OU holds many records, including the longest winning streak in college football. Oklahoma State is rising to power and should be a team that will crack the Top 25 this year. Okies love their college football and when OU beats Texas, the fans consider it a good year.
What makes Oklahoma any different than any other state? The pioneer spirit of it's inhabitants and the warm reception that you receive when you visit. Yes, I'm proud to be an Okie and the Spirit of Oklahoma runs deep in my soul!

[Paul T]

Well I think it goes even deeper than that BB. If it werent for the
whoopins I got from Dad and Mom and listened when they said
to respect others and help those in need of help. I would venture
to say I would have probably turned out like others in this country
who only think of them selves. Although being an Okie instills pride in
that you are from the state where out laws came and and a man "never met
a man he didnt like" and alot of our citizens went on to historical achievements.
I think the reason why we are seteemed as a brotherly state is that we are the heart
of the country that does the most sacraficeing and meeting the needs of the world.
I like to think it starts in Oklahoma but its not only in Oklahoma that we find it.
Look to some of the other states like the Volunteer state for example.
I am proud to be an Okie and to have other Okies to associate with but
not meaning to steal your thunder I am more proud to be of this country and to call its people family....Maby thats why we are the way we are every one we meet
is family.....

[DWFan]

I agree, Paul T; it does go deeper than that. Oklahoma is the land that nobody wanted peopled by folks that nobody wanted. Because of the erratic weather with tornados and droughts and floods and wildfires and ice/snow and scorching heat, native americans considered Oklahoma nearly inhospitable. It was the terminus for the Trail of Tears; those natives that were driven from all other parts of the east. The original names for the homelands of those people in Georgia and other states were carried over to Oklahoma: Eufala, Muscogee, etc. Oklahoma was also populated by outlaws and peoples that simply had no other place to go. Still to this day, some in the "refined" eastern cities consider Oklahoma and its residents backward and ignorant; even more than those who live in neighboring Arkansas and Missouri.
As a result, Oklahoma has developed a very "don't tread on me" attitude. They do things differently there; sometimes wrong and or confusing, but definitely different. They may call Texas the "death row state" but for a long time it was Oklahoma that had put more criminals to the ultimate punishment than any state in the country. Oklahoma had an unwritten castle doctrine in place long before most everyone else and that doctrine applied to both civilian and government intruders.
You can talk about Oklahomans taking care of there own such as the bombing and May 3 tornado, but when 9/11 went down, Oklahoma emergency workers went to NY by the hundreds and were some of the first out-of-state EMT and rescue workers there.
As a final note, The Red River Classic (OU vs Texas) might be the most well known rivalry, but Bedlam (OSU vs OU) has far more passionate fans.

[Brother Bob]

Probably the only place on this planet that has tornadoes while in the middle of a blizzard and temperatures hovering around 28 degrees! Thunder, lightning, hail, sleet, snow, and a tornado just to keep the weather from getting too boring! Jeez!

[Paul T]

And if you dont like it just walk next door usualy 10 mi away.