That’s my Texas story and I’m sticking to it

Just how Texan are you?

I wasn’t born in Texas, but I was dragged here kicking and screaming all the way. That was 2005. Today I feel like I’m about as Texan as they come, save for those of multigenerational Texas lineage. This comes to the chagrin of my Colorado family and friends. They still haven’t given up hope that I will someday return to the Centennial State. For now, I’m content to stay in a Lone Star state of mind.

If you would have told me in 2004 that I would leave Colorado for Texas and eventually come to love it I’d have looked at you like you had sprouted a unicorn horn on your forehead. Before the California invasion, the one thing Coloradans disliked the most were Texans. Nobody – and I mean nobody – likes having someone come in and brag about how much bigger and better everything is in Texas. That shtick may fly here but it stinks like a stockyard in the other 49 states.

If Texas is so great, why don’t you stay there? We used to have posters and T-shirts that said, “If God wanted Texans to ski he would have made bull**** white.” It was often suggested that the United States should divide Alaska half just to make Texas the third-largest state in the union.

You get the picture.

So, if I had such an anti-Texas bias, why did I move here? The short answer is I married a Texas gal. She lured me! (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.)

We moved to Amarillo where we did three years hard time. As badly as I wanted out of there, it also kinda grew on me. We befriended some of the most amazing people there. I still get sentimental (semi-mental?) at times when I think of that oasis in the Panhandle.

In late December of 2008 we made the move to Rosenberg. That got us closer to Sandy’s family. Moving here and working for several newspapers in the area has rewarded me with some of the most incredible opportunities and experiences. But what really turned me Texan were the volunteer positions I’ve taken, such as volunteer work with our church and the Boy Scouts.

Almost 10 years ago I joined the Brazos Bend State Park Volunteer Organization with my youngest son, Colton. He quit five years ago, but I’m still out there every chance I get. It was there that I learned a lot about alligators, snakes, turtles, armadillos, and tons of other fascinating wildlife. I continue to learn new things all the time from the incredible and knowledgeable team out there.

The other thing that piqued my interest was the Texas Army. When we first moved down here we started going to different re-enactments. It was on a trip to Goliad that Sandy discovered her fourth-great uncle, Zachariah Short, was one of those killed in the Goliad Massacre. She and my three sons share that lineage. On top of that, I’ve always been fascinated by the 1800s time period and the era of the Republic of Texas fits perfectly.

Before moving here I knew nothing about the Alamo or that Texas was even once its own nation. Now I teach people stuff like that. I go from site to site wearing funny clothes and shooting my friends with a flintlock musket. All of the re-enactors in various groups around the state are friendly, knowledgeable, and love sharing Texas history.

Even my job has helped enable my re-enactment habit. When I worked in Sealy I did stories about archeological digs at San Felipe. Now I occasionally volunteer there in the new Villa de Austin, a replica of the town as it was prior to being razed in the Runaway Scrape in 1836.

In addition to history and nature, I’ve been afforded many awesome experiences as a journalist. I’ve flown in vintage aircraft, met numerous celebrities and astronauts – including some who walked on the moon – and I’ve been skydiving. I have the enormous pleasure of photographing professional sports, including the Houston Texans, Houston Astros, and Sugar Land Space Cowboys. I’ve done some “week of” coverage of the Super Bowl (not the actual game) and I got to photograph the 2019 World Series.

OK, now I’m starting to brag, but my point is, all of these things happened to me because I became a Texan. I never had these opportunities in Colorado or the other states that I’ve lived in. It seems like each year something new and exciting comes up and I can’t wait to be a part of it. Each event and each discovery makes me that much more a Buc-ee’s lovin’, Whataburger eatin’, HEB shoppin’ Texan.

Colton, who just finished his first year of college, is a proud Aggie (is there another kind?). We’ve spent the last year getting indoctrinated in Aggie history and traditions, which has just further fueled my interest in Texas.

So, I may have come here reluctantly but you will have to drag me once more kicking and screaming to get me out of here. God has blessed me with Texas and may God forever bless Texas.

(Joe Southern is the managing editor of the Wharton Journal-Spectator and East Bernard Express. He can be reached at news@journal-spectator.com.)