Texas

Look at Texas for a second. That picture, with the Panhandle and the Gulf Coast, and the Red River and the Rio Grande are 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'll get it maybe after a second, but who else would? Even if you do, does it ever stir any feelings in you?

In every man, woman and child on this little rock the Good Lord put us on, there is somewhere in them a person who wishes just once he could be a real live Texan and get up on a horse or ride in a pickup. Did you ever hear anyone in a bar go, "Wow...so you're from Ok-la-homa. Cool. Tell me about it!" There is some bit of Texas in everyone.

Do you know why? Because Texas is TEXAS. Texas is the Alamo. Texas is 183 brave men standing in a church, facing eight thousand Mexican nationals, fighting for freedom, who had the chance to walk out and save themselves, but stayed.

We send our kids to schools named William B. Travis and Bowie and do you know why? Because those men saw a line in the sand and took the heroic route.

John Wayne paid to do the movie himself. That is Texas.

Texas is Sam Houston capturing Santa Ana at San Jacinto. Texas is Texas Independence Day. Texas is huge forests of Piney Woods like the Davy Crockett National Forest. Texas is breathtaking mountains, wonderful rivers and the bright stars at night in Big Bend.

Texas is shiny skyscrapers and great wide freeways in Houston and Dallas, beautiful beaches in Padre Island, historic charm of Galveston, and the fun filled Frio, San Marcos, Colorado and Guadalupe rivers.

Texas is world record bass from places like Lake Fork and deep sea Red Snapper near Rockport. Texas is Mexican food like nowhere in the world, even Mexico.

Texas is larger-than-life legends like Willie Nelson, Buddy Holly, Janis Joplin, ZZ Top, Earl Campbell and Nolan Ryan, Michael DeBakey, Denton Cooley, Lyndon Johnson and George Bush. Texas is great companies like Dell Computer, Compaq and Texas Instruments. Texas is great industries like NASA and Texas Medical Center in Houston.

Texas is huge herds of cattle and miles of crops.

Texas is skies blackened with doves and leases full of deer. Texas is a place where cities shut down for the Cowboys on Monday Night Football and the streets are deserted during church. Texas is beaches, deserts, lakes and rivers, mountains, prairies and forests. Most repeated comment from visitors leaving Texas: "God's country."

If it isn't in Texas, you don't need it. No one does anything bigger or better. Texas is about freedom and room to grow.

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, or California, or Maine, and your state flag, goes at 17. You fly the Stars and Stripes in front of Pine Tree High in Longview at 20 feet, and the Lone Star flies at 20 feet, too.

Do you know why? Texas is the only state that was once its own country and has the right to secede or become five small states at any time. The Republic of Texas. All of that makes you proud to be a Texan.

Our capitol is the only one in the country that is taller than the capitol building in D.C. We signed those in as part of the deal when we came on.

That's the best part right there: WHEN WE CAME ON, America got much better.