My Heros Have Always Been Cowboys

I am a Texas girl, born and bred. I love to wear cowboy boots – I own more pairs than a girl has a right too (and I could always use a few more). Trucks, jeans, cowboy hats, spurs, chaps, horses, cattle – I love it all. Which is tough, me being a city-slicker and all. I am a cowgirl who is in need of a good cowboy.

And cowboys. There is no one better than a Texas cowboy. Brave, strong, tall, sturdy in the saddle and polite. You will never meet a more polite person than a cowboy – “Yes, Ma’am.” “Let me carry that for you, Ma’am.” "Can I put out that house fire for you, partner?" I don’t agree one iota with Willie Nelson that mamas shouldn’t let their babies grow up to be cowboys. We’d have a much happier world if more mamas did.

And have you ever been to a rodeo? Those guys are built with steel. They make NFL players look like wimps with their helmets and shoulder pads to protect them from a mere 300 lb lineman. Cowboys wear spurs – Spurs! – to protect them from a 2,000 lb bull or bucking bronco that they are riding - voluntarily. (Go the the Professional Bull Riders website and they rank the bulls and list the “buck-off” stats of the top 50 bulls! More than a few have a 100% BO!) That’s the kind of guy I want in my corner.

There is, of course, the endless debate among cowboys – a debate I can go either way with – 501’s or Wranglers. There are those who say 501’s are the original cowboy jean. Button fly and brass rivets and all. There are those equally as passionate that a true cowboy only wears Wranglers – to wrangle. (You ever see a cowboy from the back while he’s wearing Wranglers? You might vote that he’s right.)

The debate here in Texas is equally as tough on the question of a cowboy’s favorite toy, his truck. Chevy and the Silverado are pretty well known around these parts. Apple pie and Chevrolet and all that. But in Texas it appears as if the Ford F150 is the must have tool in the cowboy tool box. And the older the better. Go to any city, town or wide spot in the road and you will count them by the truck load.

Not every man is born to be a cowboy. You can spot a true cowboy from a mile away. They have a certain saunter, swagger about them. They never wear their hat indoors. They always open the door for a lady and always call their Mother on her birthday. They generally have very rough hands from working hard – even if they have a desk job. (In this day and age not every cowboy gets to ride the range.) A cowboy never cusses in the presence of a lady and he takes a bath once a week whether he needs it or not. Cowboys have an easy way about them. They are never in a hurry and are always the first one there in an emergency.

But for some being a cowboy is just too much. It requires too much selflessness. Some people just don’t want the burden of being the go-to-guy. Khakis and loafers are more comfortable than jeans and boots. And that’s okay. It takes all kinds to make the world go ‘round, as they say.

Which begs the question – what kind of Cowboy would Jesus have been? Notice I didn’t ask whether He would have been one – that’s a no-brainer. No, I mean 501’s or Wranglers? Silverado or F150? Desk-set cowboy or out on the open range?

I’ll tell you what I think – I see Jesus sauntering in 501’s and Ropers – no Luccheses or Tony Lamas for Him. He just strikes me as more of a manual button Guy than a zipper Guy. And some cowboys get there Wranglers starched so they have a nice crease. No one ever does that with 501’s and no way Jesus sports a crease in His jeans. I’m also going with the F250 Super Duty with a trailer hitch. Yes, I’ve kicked it up a notch but He’s a traveling Cowboy and always has people with Him. He’s going to need the extra room and engine strength.

I don’t have to tell you what color hat He’s wearing – white straw with a silver band. His horse is a beautiful chestnut American Quarter – tall, strong and fast like the wind. Can’t you just see Him in His spurs, chaps and white shirt? “That sure looks heavy; can I help you with that problem and carry it for you, Ma’am?” “Sure looks like you could you use a little bit of grace, little Lady. Why don’t you let me give you some.” “Say, partner, I gotta heap of hope here for you. Why don’t you let me load it into your barn?” Jesus would have made an awesome Cowboy. There is not a bull or bronc alive that can throw Him.

I can see Him now. Steady, strong and true. Riding His horse across the Texas plains saddlebags full of miracles.

He is just the kind of Cowboy a cowgirl could lose her heart over.


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