The Texan Star
The Texas Story Project.
I'm a Texan, I'm a Texan,
I'm a Texan Star
I eat my beans from a mason jar ...
I repeated the beginning lyrics of this silly anthem over and over again as I walked home from kindergarten, fantasizing about what it would be like if I was a cowgirl. I could feel the salty sweat dripping down my cheeks as I rode my imaginary horse down the Wild West of the school parking lot, whooping with glee the whole time.
When my parents finally picked me up from the hot, sweltering desert of Texas, I proudly sang them the Texan Star song that I learned, and told them about how our class was going to sing it to the Trail-Riders cowboy parade as they passed by our school on Go Texan Day. I had sung that song the whole way home.
I would practice the Texan Star Song every chance I got. Every night before bed, at the dinner table, and even in the bathtub, I belted out each note with some cheesy Western accent I picked up from old Western movies. My voice grew sore, but I kept singing as if it was my last day on earth. It was just too important to be perfect for the Trail-Riders parade.
The morning of Go Texan Day finally arrived. I quickly wrestled on a cow-print dress, pulled on some too-big cowboy boots, and plopped on a sparkly cowboy hat. I was a true cowgirl now!
The whole day in class, I used Western slang and galloped around on a broomstick as I anticipated the moment where the Trail-Riders would see what a true cowgirl I was. I repeated the song over and over again to make sure it was all right until I finally heard the glorious words:
Come on, let's go outside and see the Trail-Riders!
I practically flew outside.
It took a long time to haul the other classes out, and I was very impatient. I practiced the song once more for good measure. And suddenly, when I least expected it, I saw the swishing tail of a horse out of the corner of my eye.
THE TRAIL RIDERS WERE HERE!!!
There were dozens and dozens of Cowgirls and Cowboys riding brown, red, roan, white, black, and gray mustangs, steeds, and broncos. The Cowboys and Cowgirls waved their hats and shouted, "YEE-HAW!" just like your average Cowboy. One of them even winked at me, and right then and there, I knew that I was a real, true, honest-to-goodness cowgirl. I thrusted off my hat, inhaled deeply, and sang my Texan Star Song as loud as my Cowgirl voice box would let me. I was a real Texan star, inside and out.
Scout Brooks is a 7th grader at Lanier Middle School in Houston. When she isn't writing, she acts at the HITS theatre.
Posted January 19, 2018
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