“The container of my body is big enough to hold everything I’ve experienced.” Today, I AM amazed at how much my body can hold!” – Dr. Dorothy Guy Bonvillain

Presidents and Kings, Oh My!

There’s a great quote that I believe is a perfect fit for Texas: “Texas is more than a State; it’s a State of mind.”  I was born Texan. It was a privilege to grow up there back in the day. The concept of “it takes a village” was very much intact. We were a village, folks genuinely cared about each other, not just their immediate family. We were an interconnected community of folks who cared about each other – individually and collectively. Us kids cared about our friends and families. Our parents cared about each other and all of us…teachers, administrators, doctors, the business community; all of us cared. It was a great place! 

In Texas, we were taught to automatically respect our elders and anyone in authority. We would readily say, “Yes Ma’am, No Ma’am; Yes Sir; No Sir.” Respect did not have to be earned - it was a given! I was taught core values, like integrity, faith in God, dignity, and respect; take responsibility; be accountable. People were who they said they were. They did what they said they would do. As a result, I learned to trust others, as well as to be trustworthy. My Daddy would say, “YOU are as good as your word. Your word is your bond.”     

Texans have long withheld a provincial attitude of, “Why in the world would anyone ever want to leave the borders of Texas?” I must admit, my perception of Texas was so skewed as to think we may represent the axis of the earth, until I married a career military officer, which took us on a worldwide sojourn, where I soon discovered not all people understood this concept, nor did they share my core values! 

By my Third Thirty (age 60-90) I had grown into an individual who could fill larger global footprints than I ever imagined!  I had learned I could experience difference and not find it threatening! And because I found the courage to leave my comfort zone, I learned to embrace many amazing opportunities that crossed my path.