I learned about a term today I didn’t know existed.

It’s called The Oklahoma Standard. The Daily Oklahoman editorialized today about what Memorial Day means to residents of the Sooner State. It’s a bit different than it is perhaps for the rest of the nation.

http://newsok.com/in-time-oklahomas-dark-skies-will-give-way-to-light/article/3834008

The editorial referenced Memorial Day holidays in 1995, 1999 and now in 2013. In 1995, Memorial Day fell just after the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City was blown apart in an act of domestic terror; the perpetrator was captured, tried and executed. In 1999, the holiday arrived on the heels of a terrible tornado that ripped through Moore and Midwest City. This year, the holiday comes in the wake of yet another tornado that destroyed much of Moore.

The Oklahoma Standard, according to the Oklahoman, is the giving spirit of Oklahomans who rush to aid their neighbors in times of trouble. Noting the cleanup that’s just beginning in the aftermath of the latest tragic tornado, the Oklahoman said: “Thousands of Oklahomans have volunteered their time, labor and resources to help their neighbors, providing everything from shelter to water to clothes to cash to a shoulder to cry on. This outpouring was not unexpected. The Oklahoma Standard saw to that.”

The Oklahoma Standard. May it live in the hearts of all Americans.