Gardendaze

Although there are just a few grasses visible in this photo, what I was really taking was the sculpture inside the glass. It’s called End of the Trail and it’s by James Earle Fraser. It’s a heartbreaking work–even through the glass in my bad, shadowy photograph the dejection of the figure and horse are visible.

To me, that sums up much of the history of Oklahoma. While it is a thriving place to do business now, (as they repeatedly insist in commercials, the airport and elsewhere), the history is still here of course.

So I chose to walk in the gardens of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum while my cousins toured the exhibits.

I didn’t go too far–there are proper gardens and a burial site for former rodeo horses. But some sort of construction seemed to be occurring and I didn’t want to clamber over too many cables.

I did see some creeping phlox just beginning to bloom, which was a nice treat.

The museum has 7 Frederic Remingtons. This is an enlarged version of one called Coming Through the Rye.

Interestingly enough, these palm trees didn’t seem to belong–and yet they appeared in a few places in the garden.

My other favorite thing in this museum is the vast murals of the west.

There are 5 of them but this one of Yellowstone is my favorite. I could stand in front of it for hours.

My sister says they give the bar exam in this room (hence the desk for the proctors in front). I surely never could have concentrated in a room like this!