Monday, January 29, 2007

Native

TEXAS
When you're from Texas, people that you meet ask you questions like, Do you have any cows?" "Do you have horses?" "Bet you got a bunch of guns, eh?"
They all want to know if you've been to South fork.
They watched Dallas.
Have you ever looked at a map of the world? Look at Texas with me just for a second. That picture, with the Panhandle and the Gulf Coast, and the Red River and the Rio Grande is as much a part of you as anything ever will be.
As soon as anyone anywhere in the world looks at it they know what it is. It's Texas.
Pick any kid off the street in Japan and draw him a picture of Texas in the dirt and he'll know what it is. What happens if I show you a picture of any other state?
You might get it maybe after a second or two, but who else would?
And even if you do, does it ever stir any feelings in you? In every man, woman and child on this planet, there is a person who wishes just once he could be a real live Texan and get up on a horse or ride off in a pickup.
There is some little bit of Texas in everyone.
Did you ever hear anyone in a bar go, "Wow...so you're from Iowa? Cool, tell me about it?"
Do you know why? Because there's no place like Texas.
Texas is the Alamo.
Texas is 183 men standing in a church, facing thousands of Mexican nationals, fighting for freedom, who had the chance to walk out and save themselves, but stayed instead to fight and die for the cause of freedom.
We send our kids to schools named William B. Travis and James Bowie and Crockett and do you know why?
Because those men saw a line in the sand and they decided to cross it and be heroes.
John Wayne paid to do the movie himself.
That is the Spirit of Texas. Texas is Sam Houston capturing Santa Anna at San Jacinto.
Texas is "Juneteenth" and Texas Independence Day.
Texas is huge forests of Piney Woods like the Davy Crockett National Forest.
Texas is breathtaking mountains in the Big Bend.
Texas is the unparalleled beauty of bluebonnet fields in the Texas Hill Country.
Texas is the beautiful, warm beaches of the Gulf Coast of South Texas.
Texas is the shiny skyscrapers in Houston and Dallas. Texas is world record bass from places like Lake Fork.
Texas is Mexican food like nowhere else, not even Mexico.
Texas is the Fort Worth Stockyards, Bass Hall, the Ballpark in Arlington and the Astrodome. Texas is larger-than-life legends like Michael DeBakey, Denton Cooley, Willie Nelson, Buddy Holly, Waylon Jennings, Janis Joplin, Kris Kristofferson, Tom Landry, Darrell Royal, ZZ Top, Eric Dickerson, Earl Campbell, Nolan Ryan, Sam Rayburn, George H. W.Bush, Lyndon B.Johnson, and George W. Bush.
Texas is great companies like Dell Computer, Texas Instruments and Compaq.
And LOCKHEED MARTIN AEROSPACE,! Home of the F-16 Jet Fighter and the JSF Fighter. Texas is NASA.
Texas is huge herds of cattle and miles of crops.
Texas is skies blackened with doves and fields full of deer. Texas is a place where towns and cities shut down to watch the local High School Football game on Friday nights and for the Cowboys on Monday Night Football and for the Night In Old San Antonio River Parade in San Antonio.
Texas is ocean beaches, deserts, lakes, and rivers, mountains and prairies, and modern cities.
If it isn't in Texas, you probably don't need it.
No one does anything bigger or better than it's done in Texas.
By federal law, Texas is the only state in the U.S. that can fly its flag at the same height as the U.S. flag. Think about that for a second. You fly the Stars and Stripes at 20 feet in Maryland, California, or Maine and your state flag, whatever it is, goes at 17 feet. You fly the Stars and Stripes in front of Pine Tree High in Longview or anyplace else at 20 feet, the Lone Star flies at the same height - 20 feet. Do you know why? Because it is the only state that was a republic before it became a state. Also, being a Texan is as high as being an American down here. Our capitol is the only one in the country that is taller than the capitol building in Washington, D.C. and we can divide our state into five states at any time if we wanted to!
We included these things as part of the deal when we came on.
That's the best part, right there.
Texas even has its own power grid!!
If you are a REAL TEXAN you won't even need to be told to pass this on

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Is that really true about the flag flying?

---------------------------------------------
NOTE: I receive NO financial consideration,
renumeration, or special consideration from
this shameless publicity!
-------------------------------------------
Become a Big Bend (BIBE) Supporter by
purchasing State of Texas Speciality plates
@ http://tinyurl.com/y4zow9 and for your
motorcycle @ http://tinyurl.com/yxmss9
Of the $30 fee, $22 goes directly to the
Friends of Big Bend in support of their
mission of BIBE.
---------------------------------------------
Please join the Friends of Big Bend by
direct membership @
http://www.bigbendfriends.org/membershipform.html
---------------------------------------------
Need books and maps of BIBE - then be sure and check out
http://www.bigbendbookstore.org/
and consider becoming a member of the BBNHA
Big Bend Natural History Association @
http://www.bigbendbookstore.org/members.html
--------------------------------------------
Want to take a virtual tour of Big Bend to
see what you are missing, then be sure and
visit www.virtualbigbend.com and also see
what everyone is having to say about the
West Texas Trans Pecos Big Bend Region @
www.bigbendchat.com
---------------------------------------------
How about a Big Bend coffee mug, t-shirt,
or hat. They are all the rage now and can
be purchased on-line safely and securely @
http://www.cafepress.com/virtualbigbend
Your purchases help support
www.virtualbigbend and www.bigbendchat
and keep them "free" from membership dues.
---------------------------------------------
shanea@sfajacks.com
---------------------------------------------

Stephanie Hunter said...

Yes it's true.

Rita said...

where do you get this stuff? crazy!

Anonymous said...

so do you have any cows? anuntie el

Stephanie Hunter said...

No, no cows, although I would like to milk one. On my list of lifetime goals. Someday....

Anonymous said...

This blog really created quite a little chat!!!!!