A State of MInd

In early June, Belle, Zach and I traveled to Amarillo, TX to shoot in the US National Championships of the Cowboy Fast Draw Association.  One of the side trips was a visit to the Paol Duro canyon to watch a play that the folks at the state park put on in an amphitheater there.  It's glitzy, cheesy, and a whole lot of fun, so we and forty of our closest friends went to the event.  We had a ball, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  The production was filled with patriotism, Texas Pride, and told of the travails of the settlers who came to that region in the 19th century.

When it was over, and the lights came up, a very dear friend, Marshall's Daughter, turned and asked me something like this:  "I've always wondered how other states feel when they encounter Texas Pride?"

I smiled at her (mainly because it's hard not to smile when I'm with her) but I don't remember what I replied.  While i'm a Louisiana boy, shot through to the core, I've always considered Texas a second home.  In 1960, John Wayne starred in a movie, The Alamo,   My dad took me to see it, and I sat enthralled through the whole thing.   It's a story of emigrants, trying to build a new life.  Folks from all over the country who traveled to Texas to start over.  A story of folks who wanted freedom and were willing to put their lives on the line to find it.

Since then, I've studied a lot about that revolution, both the unwavering courage and the desperate tragedy of those people, both famous and un-named.  I've read the letters from the defenders of the Alamo, telling their families how great Texas is and encouraging them to come after the fighting was over.  I've visited the battlefield at San Jacinto, and stood on the spot where Houston received Santa Anna as a prisoner.   I've been to Goliad where Fannin was massacred, and I can't go to San Antono without visiting the Alamo.

I've gone to Fort Jesup, the jumping-off spot for the Teas revolution, and read the orders book there.  It seems that the US couldn't get involved in the revolution,but there are orders there that any soldier who wanted to go to Texas would not be charged with desertion.    A separate militia company, the New Orleans Greys fought and died at the Alamo.  Texas history is inexorably linked with Louisiana.

The story of Texas, probably more than any other, influenced my decision to become a soldier, to serve something bigger than myself, to seek adventure  and to stand on a wall.

In the late '90s, after my divorce, I spent a lot of time in Texas,  I was dating a lady who lived there, and I explored the eastern part that state, from the dense brush-woods of the Big Thicket to the hill country.  I actually had several job offers there, the most appealing was to s serve the people of Jefferson, TX, a charming historical community in the northeast corner of the state.

In fact, if I hadn't met Belle when I did, I'd probably be in Texas today.  Belle, of course, knows that fact.  I'm perfectly happy (deliriously happy) with her, and I often josh with her that she saved me from the floozies that I was chasing at the time.  Quite a few of them were Texans.

Today, when we travel to Texas, We will often cross the ferry at Burkesville.  Yeah, there's a bridge now, but we still call it Burkesville Ferry.  When I cross that bridge, I feel like I've come home, although there is a lot about Texas I try to avoid.  Houston traffic sucks.  Fort Worth traffic sucks, and  please, God, would ya'll quit tearing up I-35?  Y'all have been working on that road for 20 years and haven't fixed it yet!

But, those are minor quibbles.  I love Teas, exploring the back roads and the small towns.  I love the little museums, the tiny down-home restaurants, and the people.  Texas hospitality is legendary, and I always feel welcome, wherever I go.

So, to answer the question that my dear friend asked, Texas Pride doesn't bother me one bit.  It's a pride of family, and the land, and good friends.  It's an exultation of opportunity and freedom, and I feel it too.  Texas is, to me, a state of mind.  Even though my roots and my love are firmly set in Louisiana, a big part of my heart is Texas.  I'm always looking forward to my next trip across the ferry.