I may just be able to have my dream of bringin some of that Texas Spirit up here in NY with my involvement with this new church. Every sermon I have attended is about accepting others, reaching out to the people on the outside and making them part of the Gospel of Jesus and doing what Jesus would do. Its how I have lived my life for the last 15 yrs after being immersed in the culture of Texas. Its NOT all about rednecks, trucks, country music and guns. Austin is a very liberal city where diversity is embraced. Racial divides are much more narrow than here cause people have learned to live together and intertwine the many ethnic backgrounds people come from and celebrate their traditions to make it part of the vibe of Austin. San Antonio also shares there values with a stronger Hispanic community that influences so much of the culture there. Its laid back and easy going, a strong sense of family, good manners, consideration, empathy and love shown to your fellow man. The founding of Texas was different from the rest of the country. Some of the German, Dutch and Irish settlers that made America, came through the Gulf of Mexico, to Galveston which was once swamp land, as well as Houston. The Dutch brought their dyke technology, no not gay women but the ability to drain and turn swampland into land for grazing and farming. The settlers had no desire to conquer the native inhabitants in Texas, they simply wanted to be farmers. Early settlers signed a treaty with the American Indians that is still honored today. The Indians and Mexicans taught them how to raise the Spanish horses that were here from the 1700;s and the settlers brought over cows and many other grazing animals. The American cowboy was born and has many roots to Native Americans and Mexican culture. Many of the seeds the settlers brought with them would not grow in the harsh climate of Texas and so cattle ranching was started in its place. Then of course OIL was discovered and the rest is history, so to speak! These are the values handed down generation after generation. Texas was a harsh new country and one had to depend on their neighbors for survival. Texas also soon saw migration from the North with the gold rush. The Chisholm trail was blazed through North Austin in a town called Round Rock that provided a safe crossing of the river to western lands. Texas become a US state in 1845. This is just a brief history of Texas as I came to know it. Its filled with allot of wonderful people that cherish the history and there is a state pride all its own that one cannot explain till you have been there. Some get it and stay, others dont. Its not for everyone but I for one, fell in love with Texas and fully immersed myself in the culture till it filled my heart and my soul. I miss it everyday and plan to return. For now, NY has me for just a spell. I reckon it aint never gonna be the same. IN Texas I learned another way of thinking, a slightly different mentality of how to treat ones fellow man. A shift in my values and what was important in life, a transformation of everything about who I am occurred. I learned to have fun and break free of my Northern roots. I learned to give back to others more freely and without an expectation of reciprocation. Its just how its done. Everyone in TX just does their part to support the community and each other to improve the quality of life for everyone, no one is excluded from that. To treat everyone I meet with dignity and respect, to embrace who they are and how they want to express themselves. MY friends from TX all share there values, A great and diverse group of people to know and have as friends. They will easily give you the shirt off their backs without hesitation and welcome you completely until you prove otherwise by your actions. Wanna be pretentious and stuck up, you can go stand in a corner till you get over yourself, once you do, your more than welcome to come over and dance with us. Everyday is a celebration of life and a fiesta can happen anytime, anywhere with great food, great music and above all JOY! It cant be a fiesta without a celebration of life! This was my experience. Yeah I saw some people with guns and some rednecks, every single city in America has them but even some of them have a limit and attitudes are changing slowly. Texas will become a blue state in the next 5 yrs I believe. The diversity is growing and it will be forced to adapt. Not everyone in Texas thinks like Bush and Perry was an embarrassment to many good Texans who dont share their extreme political views and advocate for changes, they are happening slowly but surely. My experience was positive for the most part and I bring all of this with me to Rochester, NY. I am hoping as yalls get to know me up here, I can influence some of yalls to have more fun in your lives. To walk the talk of the gospels that we are learning each week. Reach out as the Pastor has suggested, break out of your comfortable circle and make it bigger by adding someone else to it. We all have our gifts and unique perspective or sense of humor as shown to us in the TV show Designing Women. Remember, in the south we dont hide crazy up in the attic, why we bring it right on down to the living room and show it off, WE is PROUD of our crazy people and they do exist in every family. All ya got to do is ask what side they are on and its usually BOTH but we love em anyways When they get to out of hand, we just shove a drink in their hands and tell em to chill for a moment with a pat on the head and kiss on the cheek, that usually calms em right on down. That simple acknowledgment that they matter and are important and they are very much loved even though they are different. Its all good and we learn from each other and ya just never know when you may just need that crazy person to help you and your very life may well depend on it. Paying it forward is the natural and social thing to do. A true Texan will always lend a hand when needed, for they know someone has done it for them. Its done without looking down at the person and later on, yalls will laugh about it over a beer and some great BBQ or Tex-Mex. Thats how friends are usually made, the ones that matter the most! Texas is in my heart and in my soul and it makes it sing! I bring with me the Texas spirit and through knowing me, yalls will get to know all the incredible people who have influenced me for the last 15 years. I carry them in my heart and in my spirit, they keep me strong and a constantly influence me to do the right thing and remember who I am as an individual. Texas brought out the very best of who I am that my Northern Heritage gave to me. I also learned to relax and be free from all the worries and stress of status and superficial thinking that was blocking the joy in my heart to flow as freely as it does. I dont ever want to revert back to who I was prior to receiving my Texas experience. FOR those open to it, yalls are about to get just that through knowing me! Its all GOOD!
Posted on: Mon, 31 Mar 2014 02:32:44 +0000