Well, duh! Right? Let me explain. Texas is a bunch of people who form a society. Not all are. Many societies are societies of the governed. Is Texas not governed, you might ask, and the answer is yes, of course. But the government is not what Texas society is built on. It is built on people. Societies of the governed look to the government for help. Texans look to people for help, because they know that their people will be there for them. Not the government. And all Texans know this and are comforted knowing that Texans will have their backs, if needed. They don’t just feel comforted by it. They take pride in knowing it, and that they are of the same mind as their fellow Texans. You see, Texas really is special. Ask any Texan. Yes, they will let you know it, too. It is part of keeping it special. You see, Texas is a state of mind and not just a state of land and people.
It goes back to the beginning. The Mexicans in Texas got little from Mexico as the land was so far off on the frontier, and the non-Mexican settlers had left their own countries behind. Government wasn’t around much. They learned to help each other. That is what stuck. They weren’t Mexican governed people and they weren’t the governed of the countries they had left behind. They were Texans. That spirit, pride, way of thinking, culture, all of it took hold and not only grew, it was lovingly nurtured. Texans start with the idea that you have to take care of yourself and then you may have to help someone else if they have a hard time taking care of themselves, with the understanding that the person being helped only wants to get back to taking care of themselves. They’re Texans, both. It is so simple, really. What you see in this flooding in Texas is the same simplicity. No one sees anything other than another Texan. Those being helped are very thankful to have Texans opening their arms to help with no expectations other than a “Thank you.” They are helped but they don’t have to surrender their dignity. They are Texans, after all. They have already lived the Texan way and have been good Texans. They know. They will get right back up and be ready to step up the next time a Texan needs help.
Now, if someone wants to hand a Texan in need a $100 bill he isn’t too proud to accept your help. He may not be able to pay you back for awhile. But know that he will pay it back to someone when he can. Unless you are the government. Texans have an aversion to taking money from the government because it usually has the taint of stinking strings. They pretty much think that government is welcome to help but try to stay out of the way of the work that needs to be done.
The Texans will return, quickly roll up their sleeves and get to work. It won’t take long. I know, I know, you hear about how it will take years to fully recover. Those are bean counters talking. The people of Texas aren’t the kind of people who lollygag or stand around looking at the work that needs to be done. They get after it. Plus, there is that Texan thing. They aren’t going anywhere because there is no place on Earth they would rather be. Texas is special, and it is Texans who make it that way.