WEBVTT

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So I'm sure you're familiar
with the lucky Chinese?

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It's a mainstay.

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This is a poem about Texas.

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It's called "In
Praise of Texas."

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"So many times I've
rushed into airports,

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frazzled, my hair everywhere
as I lugged the bags along,

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my hair flush from hurrying,
and my breathing loud and raspy.

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But I will never be
seen like that in Texas

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because George Strait
lives in Texas.

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A friend saw him once at
gate 29 at Dallas Fort Worth.

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'He is so nice,' she
said, and to prove it,

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she handed me a picture.

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George Strait had
his arm around her.

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He was smiling.

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I struggled so to
share her happiness.

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Though that was
years ago, I believe

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that unending faith precedes
literary possibilities.

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I believe that the
world is basically good.

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And so I am certain
that one day I

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will just happen to run
into George Strait in Texas.

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Maybe he'll be buying The Dallas
Morning News at a Circle K.

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Maybe as I'm having
a salad, he'll

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walk into the same cafe
like an ordinary person

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and order a medium Diet Coke.

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Each time I am in Texas
my hair shines radiant.

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I won't allow dark thoughts
to mar my face even

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for an instant.

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My hat has been
steamed and reshaped.

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My clothes are smooth
and coordinated,

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and I am never rushed.

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Once as we dined along the
Riverwalk in San Antonio,

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my husband smiled at me and
said, 'you sure are pretty.'

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'Thanks honey,' I said,
'but do you really mean it,

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or are you just saying that?'

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'I really mean it,' he said.

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I removed my sunglasses
and search his face

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in the evening
light, but I couldn't

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tell if he really meant it.

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In any case, I glanced
around very discreetly

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to see if anyone else, maybe
a country western singer,

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shared his sentiment.

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Just in case I reminded
myself to sit up straight.

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No way, you'll never see me
looking frazzled, or the least

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bit scuzzy in Texas.

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Whether did we drive
through Dalhart,

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visit Fort Worth for a few
days, take in a Rangers game,

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or whether I have a brief
layover at Houston Hobby,

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I believe that one has to
be prepared for whatever

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Texas has to offer.

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Sometimes as the plane glides
over that vast plains state,

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above scattered
herds of horses, I

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can see the luster sparkling
off their broad backs

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like intense hope,
and I am reassured

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that dreams can blossom without
any urging on our part."

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