It occurred to me this evening while watching a
GPB/PBS documentary on Col. Wild Bill Cody, that I was taught and already knew much about this American figure by the time I completed Kindergarten and first grade at Loy Elementary School in Great Falls, Montana. Yet, I haven't heard anything about him or his massive scale Wild West Show or his importance to
The Greater American Story since Spring of 1978. I suppose history and culture are localized.
In my Montana Kindergarten curriculum, there was no concept of slavery or the civil war, but we learned through tribulation that all Americans, including the Native Americans were to be treated with respect and mutual admiration. The concepts of
Expo and
Trading Post encouraged cultural exchange.
After moving to and from grammar school Hawaii, which shared this similar rich "respect for all men" with a tropical, romantic mystique, I landed in the proud West Texas education system in 1981 -- a very different place.
In San Angelo, Texas, I learned that "life is hard, and if it isn't, you are probably cheating and you'll get caught soon enough". I also learned a lot of
Dry Pflueger Wisdom that I dispense to myself upon occasion when I tumble. There's no doubt, I attribute my Texan education to fueling my tenacity to fight for what is
right in my heart.
But, sadly, it was also here, during my tween and preteen middle school Texan lessons, I was taught concepts of prejudice, self-righteousness, "zero tolerance" and the
homogeneous agenda. If my parents ever wondered at what point
everything changed for me, it was West Texas. Looking back, I think my young psyche received a cultural rip. It happens to us all... eventually.
(Onward, the large-scale influences from being a High Schooler in rural England and suburban Tucson in the mid-late 1980s might very well blow your mind, so I'll leave that part out for now.)
Centering back on my original point, Wild Bill Cody hadn't much importance to the
West Texas Story nor the
Hawaiian Statehood Story, but I know, as someone that has fallen in love with the State of Georgia (where there are regional folks tales as well), all those many stories -- some similar and some
contradicting -- are all the many pieces of wisdom shared with me by my teachers and mentors across the world. For this, I believe I have a better understanding of people.
In an America, where we lead entertainment across the globe, it's important to note: Colonel Wild Bill Cody was the first True-American Showman. A pioneer in global showbiz and the postal service, for that matter.
peace-
seanrox
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seanrox.com.
Labels: education, Hawaii, local flavor, Montana, West Texas
