Hill Country Residents Live In A Destination Site

Everyone says that that the Wednesday before Thanksgiving is the busiest travel day of the year. While the actual “destination” where family and friends are gathered is the part everyone looks forward to, getting there and then returning home is the part everyone dreads.

There are two types of people during the Thanksgiving holiday, those who travel and those who don’t. Those who travel have to endure the unpleasantness of heavy highway traffic, airport delays, long layovers, and stuffing luggage into the overhead bins of jam-packed airplanes. Those who don’t travel, well, they enjoy the benefits of living in a destination site. The Texas Hill Country is not only a destination site; it is an inviting one at that.

Of course, any place someone travels to is a destination site. But some destinations are just a lot more agreeable than others. Let’s face it, if I’m going to go through the packing of bags, long hours on the road, and numerous travel hassles, I’d like to think that at the end of my journey there is something a little more to be enjoyed than huddling around a space heater on some chilly windswept prairie or frozen tundra talking with Grandma and eating a turkey sandwich. If that describes your situation, you should tell Grandma to move to a destination site that people wish to visit. You might incent her to do so by telling her that you would visit more often if she did.

There are many attractive destination sites around the country, but, of course I’m partial to the Texas Hill Country. We’ve got lots of Grandmas down here, and I can tell you, the ones I know weren’t standing in a long line today waiting to pass through the security checkpoint at some airport. They were waiting for their family members to arrive in the hill country to visit them. And many, while they were waiting, played golf or were out on a boat on one of the Highland Lakes.

There were no travels for me today, other than to run into town to grab a coffee and a bacon and cheese croissant. I was not fumbling around trying to find my electronic ticket number, or, waiting for my boarding zone to be called. After my croissant, I rode around on my golf cart, and took the dog for a walk. Boats were plentiful today on Lake Travis, people were walking out on the sand, others were playing tennis, and golfers were improving their game on the local course. But then, I live in the Texas Hill Country, a darn good destination site at that.

Tomorrow’s high (Thanksgiving Day) according to the National Weather Service, will be 38 degrees in a major Midwest City up north. Friday’s high in that same city will be 45 degrees and then 43 degrees on Saturday. Here in the hill country, the respective high temperatures are 68 degrees on Thanksgiving Day, 70 degrees on Friday, and 72 degrees on Saturday. What’s not to like? If your Grandmother lives up in that cold anonymous Midwest City, tell her to get that “For Sale” sign up in her yard and move south to the hill country of Texas. She’ll probably see you a lot more often. Why? Because you will take the time to visit her more as she lives in a pleasant, and most agreeable, destination site, and you’ll be golfing and boating once you get here (with Grandma tagging along, of course).

Veterans Day In the Texas Hill Country – November 11

The recent tragic events at Fort Hood here in Texas, should remind us once again of the sacrifices veterans have made, and continue to make, in both the defense of our nation and in the support of the freedoms we enjoy.

Soon after the end of World War I, the so-called “War to End All Wars,” nations who had participated in the bloody conflict, began observing the specific day and time the armistice was signed, November 11, 1918, at 11:00 in the morning. In the United States, “Armistice Day,” was officially recognized as a national holiday, and was initially only a remembrance of the end of World War I and the veterans of that war.

In 1954, the national holiday was officially changed to “Veterans Day,” a change no doubt made to recognize the large numbers of new veterans who had served during World War II and the Korean War. Later, for a relatively brief period of time, the holiday was moved to the fourth Monday in October, in order to give those who get the day off a three day weekend. Common sense finally prevailed, and the day of national recognition was moved back to November 11th of every year.

Since the very first “Armistice Day” was recognized, the numbers of veterans have increased in every generation. After World War II, came the veterans of the “Cold War,” Korea, Vietnam and Southeast Asia, El Salvador, Grenada, Panama, Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, and Iraq. And these are just the “major” conflicts since World War II. This list does not take into account all the smaller conflicts or the many other peacetime veterans serving faithfully in assignments in the United States or more distant places around the world. Nor, does the list take into account the veterans of the numerous conflicts prior to World War I.

Wherever veterans served, whatever time period they served, or whatever job they performed in the service of our country, they all deserve our respect and gratitude for their service. Many Texas Hill Country towns have statues honoring veterans in the town square, and veteran celebrations will be held throughout the hill country, as they always are, on November 11th.

There are thousands of monuments and statues recognizing our veterans in large cities, small towns, and cemeteries across the nation. Many of these monuments show heroic veterans depicted in battle. As a citizen, veteran, and historian of this great country, I’ve greatly appreciated every veteran monument I’ve ever seen, and I'm inspired by every one of them.

The monument most moving to me, however, is located in the small hill country town of Jonestown, Texas. At Veterans Memorial Park, the monument does not highlight heroic battle scenes or dramatic flag raisings over a battle-scarred landscape, but rather the statue of a single serviceman, sitting alone with his duffle bag, waiting to go home upon the completion of military service to our nation. And, except for those brave veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, this is a monument which best reflects the average veteran who has served this country in either war or peace. The veteran left home, served our country, and then returned home. That’s something every living veteran can relate to.

The important veterans in my life are numerous. From my Dad, and his World War II generation, through the veterans of my generation, and now the veterans of more recent times, please remember them all on this Veterans Day. They are a relatively small group compared with the large population of our country, and they all deserve our respect for the many sacrifices they have made on our behalf.

On at least this one day of the year, please thank a veteran for his or her service. They will appreciate it, and you'll feel great after having done it.