This past week has been an adventure into not only the American heartland, but the American soul. Oklahoma, a bastion for old timing, smoking, wal mart going peoplefolk, also a bastion for undiscovered treasures like a pirate cave in the carribian. My family undertook a great risk in a voyage from California to the heart of America, without knowledge or the budget to pay for something that we didn't even know would be worth it. It was done on hope and muscle. This taught me about resolve, but more than anything it taught me about risk. About the importance of risk. Without the willingness to take a risk, my family buisness would have been exausted, and our home taken from us. But because we took a risk, A dangerous risk that could have gotten us stuck with not a Furry for 100 miles, we singlehandedly saved ourselves without having to beg for money from friends or institutions. I learned the meaning, and the potential reward for risk. The records we bought could garner us 15,000, and whats best is that we beat out our sleazy business competition to the prize. I almost didn't go on the trip. I almost didn't take the risk, because I was too scared to leave the comfort of suburbia. I almost gave up being a contributing force to my family's house and home.