Ladybird Johnson - A Humble Thanks

There is nothing like Springtime in Central Texas! Our summers are best described as “crispy” – ever-present droughts keep things a bit on the “beige” side landscapewise. “Winter” is simply void of color. “Fall” is a mythical season that lasts appx. 15 minutes, if we get it at all.

Spring is an overnight explosion of color – a blast that awakens us from months of dreary shades. A sudden reminder that nature’s rebirth is a miracle. Simply put – I don’t think there’s a Texan alive who doesn’t utter the colloquial “WHOA!” when first presented with that first unexpected view of a Bluebonnet laden hillside or a field of Indian Paintbrushes. Texas wildflowers THE sign of Spring in these parts – an annual rite that we both subconsciously expect, but also marvel at; as if we’re seeing the phenomenon anew each year. Texas wildflowers are the “adrenalin” that kicks us squarely out of our winter slumber and fills us with ambition for things to come.

Hard to imagine that our annual rite of passage is mainly the responsibility of one woman. Ladybird Johnson was, and IS, at the very heart of the miracle that is Texas Springtime. An environmentalist of the highest order, it was Mrs. Johnson who first brought to bear the “Highway Beautification Act” of 1965 that brought our gemlike wildflowers out of hiding in the nooks and crannies of the Hill Country and placed them foresquare across the land. It was her love of native flora that prompted her to share the beauty of God’s most delicate creations with all Texans. Ladybird Johnson gave us our wildflowers.

Mrs. Johnson passed away yesterday at age 94. She turned a life of political darkness into a lifetime of service to the cosmos. What a woman – what a legacy!

Thanks for the flowers, Mrs. Johnson. Thanks for Springtime.