Given that much of my career has been built around the literature and history of Texas, I suppose my dream last night was not a surprise. I notably have colorful dreams—yes, in technicolor, and I hear sounds and smell good things. And sometimes I remember them well into the next day. I used to say my best writing was done at three in the morning when I was asleep. Alas, that’s not true anymore, but last night’s dream has stayed with me.
I was
getting ready to go to school, though I wasn’t certain if it was high school or
college or what I was doing there. (I frequently have that college dream where I
haven’t been to class all semester and now it’s finals and I’m in a panic, but
this was different). I remember putting on makeup, including that horrible blue
eye shadow we used to think was so smart. And then, somehow, I was teaching a
class—in an outdoor classroom with a huge body of water in the background (the
Gulf?). I had to go back inside to get my sunglasses.
The
class was on Texas culture, and I decided to let the students teach the class.
(That’s a favorite technic of mine: I once taught a writing seminar using the
City of Fort Worth as a focus and even took the kids on a bus tour and supper
at Star Café in the Stockyards—medium successful). This time I said each would
be asked to do an in-depth study of some aspect of Texas culture—not just the
usual broad categories of food, music, geography, but digging deeper. And then
the class and I began to come up with topics: how do Texans raise their
children? What are Texas religious values? How does geography shape our lives—divided
into regions like coastal South Texas, the High Plains, etc. Now I can’t
remember all the topics we came up with, but at the time they were brilliant.
I
decided this dream is worth mentioning because it illustrated to me what a
wonderful place Texas can be. And knowing my sympathies, when I woke it led me
to the next thought: we must not, we cannot let hardline, alt-right
conservatives constrict Texas with their tight laws on abortion trans kids,
LGBTQ lifestyle, school curriculum and library books. Texas has a wonderful and
rich heritage—okay some myth, mixed with a lot of truth. And today we are a
rich and diverse culture, with contributions from many heritages that blend to
make a remarkable whole. We cannot let that be erased and consigned to the dump
heap because Greg Abbot, Dan Patrick, and Ken Paxton want to play to their base
and further their political careers. Folks, our ancestors (okay, I’m not a
native Texan and can’t claim them but many can) fought and died in the Texas
Revolution for the life they wanted to live in Texas. I’m not at all suggesting
we take up arms, but I am suggesting we have to fight—and fight hard—at the polls,
in public meetings, in school board meetings, any place we can make our voices
heard.
I was impressed
with many articles about Madeline Albright, several of which repeated her statement
that she was late in coming to make her voice heard, but once she found her
voice, she would not be silenced. I so agree with her, and I think it’s up to
each of us—particularly Texas women—to make our voices heard. Women are so
involved in abortion, child-raising, education, and we can make such a
difference.
That
thought logically brought me to Ukraine, where women are fighting alongside
their husbands and sons. I cannot say strongly enough how overwhelmed I am with
the spirit, determination, and resilience of that people as a nation. The world
has not seen anything like it since the resistance fighters of WWII. But you
know what makes me love those people all the more? The ones who flee to safety,
leaving loved ones behind to fight, take their dogs and cats with them. I find
that a remarkable show of loyalty and courage. That they would look out for
their pets is such an important statement of who they are.
Pray
for Ukraine, for the people, for the animals, for their charismatic leader. Who
knows when the world will again see such courage and determination? And pray for
Texas, that we can be free to live our lives as we want and not according to
dictates from our state government. Make it happen!
