Each year brings new challenges and growth, and this year had so many for me. I am so grateful that God has kept shining His light on me and granted me Grace through this last year… to say that I am grateful that I was able to stand strong and steadfast through my second term as mayor for the city of Lake Helen, Florida amidst some of the challenges faced is an understatement. I am grateful to be on the other side having fulfilled my duty.
Our traditional drive South to Miami to spend Thanksgiving with mom and my brothers did not happen, rather we were blessed to spend it with our son Geordan and his girlfriend Haley. It was with such freedom that I sat at our dinner table enjoying the wonderful meal after spending hours preparing our meal and loving every bit of it. …and I was so touched when Geordan asked me to say my fathers traditional Thanksgiving Prayer in his memory, I had to hold back my tears so as not to ruin the festive momentum we were enjoying.
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George and I did something that try to avoid on holidays… which is flying during peak holiday season. Adding to the pre-conceived idea that we did not want to be ‘flying’ out for Thanksgiving was that it was 2021 – post COVID and we did not know what to expect.
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The airport and flying was not as bad as we anticipated it to be. We were surprised that for all the “negative” news reporting overcrowding and congestion – we were of the opinion that it was a bleak travel season for the airline industry. Either way, we were going to find out if it’s true that “Everything is bigger in Texas”.
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Enjoying the hospitality of our friends Lee and his wife Barbara in Frisco,Texas. Zachary, his son, had flown in from New York and Millie from St. Augustine, Florida.
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Barbara was going through her list for the Thanksgiving dinner and suggested we make a run to their local supermarket Krogers – I must say, the customer service was warm and inviting compared to the customer service in Florida (an embarrassing observation on my part, I do believe Florida needs to take notes – cause even hospitality is bigger in Texas!). Plus, their Christmas decorations were adorable! So, I started this little thing with the girls (Barbara and Lee’s sister Millie) that we would take a picture by every Christmas tree we’d run into. It was not long into it when they caught the holiday bug and were all giggly and enjoying every bit, I thought it was amusing since Millie is Jewish, and I’d gleefully shout to her – “Millie, come, hurry… let’s take a picture by the Hanukah bush!” and she’d run over like a little girl. Loved it!
Lee insisted we needed to taste Hurts Donut – FortWorth, Texas… and we did.
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We were filled with Love in our heart to be with our friend Lee and to see him, to celebrate him and his success on Thanksgiving Day… this joy permeated our day and we were all buzzing with the holiday spirit. The men went out to the backyard to get the air fryer going… and well, you can see by the expression – looks says it all: “When no one reads the instructions”. Back inside we turned on the television for the traditional Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade while the smells were teasing our senses.
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The dinner was spectacular!! We literally rolled over to the living room and enjoyed an evening movie and our fellowship.
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Lee and Barbara have a lovely home, Barbara is an avid Lego collector and builder; her Lego is set up tastefully on display throughout their home… Lee is sentimental when it comes to family, he displays his mother’s doll and ceramic bull.
And then there is a true sign of affection. You know your friend loves you enough to display your artwork – even when it has a crazy-looking universe and a lion floating in space.
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Texas really is… go big or go home. Plano Texas is popping, that could easily be said for Frisco Texas or any other city in Texas. It’s not just Tesla, Oracle, and Hewlett Packard … those are just some of the big names that are moving to Texas.
Lee drove us through Legacy West, it is a posh shopping district with amazing stores that I dream of shopping at, and amazing dining spots from every imaginable cuisine.
Within the last 3 or 4 years, acres and acres of farmland have quickly turned into pricey residential parcels… as if each subdivision is attempting to show off who makes them bigger and better. Very soon cattle ranching may be something of the past. What will be of the American cowboys … the cattle drives and such will be preserved in history and movies.
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Flipping the switch… even food is BIG in Texas, at least Hard Eight BBQ- Coppell is making sure of it – cause “That’s How We Roll” (that’s what the sign read walking in). Their smokers are on all day, the place is packed – all day! And the food is delicious – ALL DAY! This place… is definitely worth driving to from anywhere in Texas and worth returning to!
Lee knows I love cattle… he drove us out to Texas Fort Worth Stockyards Station.
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Fort Worth Stockyards Historic District was built near the railroads back in 1876, making the area a very important livestock center. The stockyard originally was the place where cattle, sheep, and hogs could be bought, sold, and “dressed”. At the turn of the century, livestock auctions began taking place closer to where the livestock was originally produced and this took business away from the Fort Worth Stockyards.
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It was a smart move of Fort Worth Texas and the Texas Historic Commission to preserve this beautiful history and list 46 buildings to the National Register as a historical district – which included the stockyards, Cowtown Coliseum and Stockyard Hotel. Walking on the old bricks and through the old buildings and stockyards… for a moment one could get lost in time.
Definitely worth a visit to view the Longhorns, “Cattle Drive” and browse through shops – plus there is no shortage of places to eat or saloons to quench your thirst.
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The Fort Worth Stockyards Station in Texas must have been a big thing then… and by the looks of it, the nostalgia of its history has kept it a BIG thing now. Trail of Fame line the old brick paths, shops showcasing wide-brimmed cowboy hats and leather boots in this western historic district lure you into bringing home a piece of Texas and maybe even the idea of old of American history en-laced with the new America we live today.
I walked into the lobby of the Stockyards Hotel and for a moment I could imagine myself standing there with the fashion of the time – it has been designed to maintain the decor of its time in rich reds and leather. The boutique hotel was known for its Texas-style hospitality and it also had on its guest registry, Bonnie and Clyde. The hotel offers accommodations in the Bonnie and Clyde ‘junior suite’ – the actual room occupied by Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker during their 1933 stay in Ft. Worth.
A short walk and there is the White Elephant Saloon – it has a story of an unforgettable shoot-out with Sheriff Longhair Jim and then owner of the saloon Luke Short.
The Fort Worth Stockyards hold a place in history that remembers western outlaws and folk heroes, which adds to the nostalgic appeal.
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There was no shortage of restaurants like Riscky’s – it had a big cow or bull as an ornament on the outside top of the building – you think they offer steaks? and there were shops like Finchers White Front, that one had a big rusty red horse, and of course many western style dive bars like the Niles City Hall – I did try looking for the Mayor to see if there was a ‘Bitching Post’ nearby.
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The Fort Worth Stockyards Station Cowtown Coliseum is really a HUGE rodeo arena that showcases weekly championship rodeos throughout the year. YUP… in Texas it’s go BIG or go home.
One of the Texas Trail of Fame stars read: Great American Cattle Drive of 1995 -Texas to Montana. commemorating the 1995 cattle drive.
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I am a person that loves paying attention to detail… I believe that God is in the details. There was so much detail to take in that I am only sharing a bit of what caught my eye. Like the horseshoe art, “Legacy of the Land”, 2008 by Steve Teeters commissioned for that art piece by the Fort Worth Public Art Commission.
Also… for a small price people were taking pictures on top of saddled longhorns.
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Fort Worth Stockyards Station has a museum rich in history. The current building use to be the “Livestock Exchange Building” once known as “The Wall Street of the West”, it housed the offices for cattle traders. Today it is the home of North Fort Worth Historical Society Museum.
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While the museum is on the first floor, the second floor is occupied by professional services. Behind the building are the “stockyards”. Somehow I found myself on the second floor…. shhh. That’s a story for another time.
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At the Texas, Fort Worth Stockyards Station Depot. Ooh, train tracks! What’s a girl to do: “Stricke a pose!”
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Coincidently, I can consider this really My Thanksgiving Birthday Weekend… and this birthday girl can’t complain… Texas IS- go BIG or go home. The Fort Worth Stockyards Station even had a Christmas parade with Christmas cowboys, Drummers, Choo-choo train, Ballerina, the Sheriff and a Christmas Cowboy Santa!
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What a lovely Christmas tree for this special picture perfect day and to capture this moment – priceless.
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So, part of the attraction at the stockyards in Fortworth Texas is the cattle drive – the cowboys drive the cattles in front of the Fort Worth Livestock Exchange Building and then back to the holding pens behind the Livestock Exchange Building.
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My charming smile got me into a restricted area… and ‘somehow’ I managed to find hay to feed the longhorn. … and you bet! This was the highlight of my whole day!! I thank George for his patience with me and capturing these memories, and thankful to our friend Lee for showing us such a magical place.
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The main attraction in my opinion at the Fort Worth Stockyards Station is the Longhorns. I love cattle. My grandfather was a cattle rancher on the island (sold beef and milk)… we had island cowboys that would help him herd the cattle from one pasture to the other. I love the smell of cows, I love to watch them graze and I find it peaceful to watch them sit ‘re-eating’ their food (known as rumination).
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59 and feeling Blessed and Grateful. Grateful to have spent special time with our friend Lee and his family, it truly is “go BIG or go home” in Texas. He didn’t disappoint and neither did Texas.
I leave you with these images I captured… the first one is mosaic floor tile artwork at the Dallas, Texas airport -and well, you can imagine the by the Harry Potter poster that latter indicates – Welcome Back to Florida… the other mosaid floor tile work is found at the Orlando, Florida Airport.
Well my Dear Ones, America is beautiful. Yet nothing is as beautiful as sharing and Loving life with family and friends – Happy Thanksgiving!
I can say that a piece of me has my heart in Texas, alas sunny Florida – Home I am.
