By King Hill
Thanksgiving is a day to reflect and be grateful for life’s blessings. It is a time of family, friends, great food and fellowship. It is a time for appreciation of all blessings and for me, a time to remember.
Like most folks, I have many reasons to be grateful. I am blessed beyond measure with a loving wife, family, friends, my faithful companion, Nala, "The Wonder Dog," and knock on wood, passable health and unquenchable passion to write and create, the gift of a heritage shaped by my late father, mother, cowboy grandparents who passed on a legacy and love of learning and the importance of history and remembering values and traditions that shaped this part of the world, myself and many others. I am grateful for the ability to share those stories and people in theatrical shows.
Thanksgiving may seem like a strange time to express thankfulness for historical events like my new show about the Alamo. But, it was a Thanksgiving trip when I was a child that set the course for my work. Like many boys growing up in the fifties, I knew all the words to the Disney Davy Crockett song, watched the Fess Parker character faithfully, wore the coonskin cap, and played Alamo with my friends. My parents supported and fostered my early love of history and heroes and so we made the pilgrimage to the Alamo Shrine in San Antonio. Quietly, reverently awestruck my brother and I entered the chapel where my heroes had fought and died. It kindled the flame that would stay with me. I listened, learned, and remembered.
My father then extended the lessons recognizing my imagination and flair for the dramatic by driving us 100 miles west to the remote ranch of Happy Shahan near Brackettville where John Wayne had spent a fortune to realistically recreate the Alamo compound, buildings, and village. My passion for history, story-telling, and the true impact of events became a bonfire. I was and remain an Alamo addict just like singer Phil Collins and countless more. My wife & I will soon travel to meet with Alamo officials as part of my continuing work and research and a new Production with Lone Star Ballet, local actors & actresses, singers and more which will tell the Alamo story to young students and adults in January 24 & 25 at the Globe News Center for the Performing Arts as part of the Windows on a Wider World educational programming. My thankfulness for this project and my loving parents who understood and supported my early love of history will be celebrated this Thanksgiving.
Yes I am thankful for many blessings and I will remember my heritage. I will remember my early lessons and legacy and the need to share it. I will remember and be grateful for the men and women, both Texian & Tejano who sacrificed so that there is a Texas. I will be thankful.
I will ‘REMEMBER THE ALAMO”
