While the rest of the world is turning... Houston enjoys Rodeo! For 3 whole weeks the city if consumed by Cowboys, Horses and Concerts. Lots of fun Concerts. This year so far I have gone to see Lady Antebellum and Thursday, it was Bruno Mars!
One of my life long habits has been volunteering. In High School it was the library and nursing homes. In college it was well... just about anything from church to official governmental offices that helped people complete their INS forms to become Citizens. I have always loved helping. More so in those areas where my culture, my language {Spanish} and my passion would shine through!
In 2008, I was asked to become a part of a
Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Committee which provided daily tours to students and international visitors of the Rodeo... in particular those who spoke Spanish. I was added on to the roster of Bilingual Tours Committeemen and I won an award that year... Best Spanish Speaking Tour guide! Say What! Ha. I did. It was a fun committee. I loved, I mean LOVED it! More so hearing the Hispanic kids mostly Mexican kids tell me how their parents; owned horses and ate pigs! True story one little boy in particular gave me the run down as I gave his class a tour of the Ag-Venture livestock area... he told me that his Dad had goats and that he would kill them and eat them... {circle of life}, but amazingly as we went on this possible 2nd or 3rd grader went on to tell me how they also had pigs and how they also killed and ate those... when we got to the cows he said he Dad showed him to milk the cows just like the one I was telling his class about. When we got to the horses I said. "So, do you eat the horses too?"... and in a very Norteño accent he says to me in Spanish; "No'mbre! Esos los montamos!"And, as I pictured the little boy and his Dad, Vaqueros of the Houston area, riding away into the sunset and this little man being so full of agricultural knowledge and life long skills, I knew that my job as a volunteer with the Houston Rodeo....would be a fulfilling one!
I loved it and as the years go by I am excited to be a part of such an awesome Houston; lifestyle and tradition. I mean the days of riding off the farm in your horse and carriage into the city to work or conduct business are long gone, the
Vaquero traditions live in this city very vividly for 3 weeks! Along with tradition, entertainment and Texas heritage the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo brings large groups into Houston from all over the world. I mean, I have met many Mexican Cowboys and European Cowboys as well as people from Japan and many parts of the U.S. Who come specifically to see what the Houston Rodeo is all about. There is also the matter of money raising for not only local kids but Texas High School students to obtain not only agricultural skills but also
scholarships to go to college. My current committee raised over 6 Million this year alone!
It's definitely an organization that I am very proud of and enjoy participating with. And, all of the above mentioned are the kind of Texas and Mexican culture that we want to instill in our Children. Volunteer work, Heritage and yearly traditions!
I used to be in LOVE with Mexico and every year thought that NOTHING could ever compare to my Mexico lindo y querido! But, as I grow older and learn to enjoy local Texas cities and traditions I know that Mexico is beautiful, but Houston and Texas has a lot to offer a family who wants to have well-rounded and locally educated children! Don't get me wrong... one day I hope to be able to travel to Mexico to show my children the cities where their Grand-parents were born and where I grew up {
Cuernavaca &
Reynosa} but for now... we will have to settle for local grounds!
YOU CAN SEE LAST YEARS EPIC FAIL
::HERE::
And, a THANK YOU to Xenia from Raised by Culture...for helping me gain some perspective and inspiration...
Sometimes we don't realize our own potential until someone opens your eyes...
