Loyalty.....A Trait To Be Valued

ARLINGTON, TEXAS----I value loyalty above most things. That’s why I so love the phrase “Ride For the Brand.” It’s a wonderful “West Texas way” to say that we need to be loyal to the people and places that have served us.


So you can understand why I couldn’t look like the rest of the 40,900 fans at Ranger Stadium on this day-before-Memorial Day 2011. I kinda blended in since I was wearing red. But my red shirt had a redbird perched on a bat…..the symbol of the St. Louis Cardinals….the team that has earned my loyalty for over five decades.

Carol….the woman that I am loyal to…..was wearing a Nolan Ryan jersey. Nolan now owns the Rangers and was sitting a few rows down from us with former president George W. Bush and his wife Laura. Carol tries to parse the whole Ranger thing by saying she has “an American league team….and a National league team.” Horse hockey. Dance with the guy who brought ya…..

I have many simple but iron clad loyalties. The Cardinals….the Kansas Jayhawk basketball program….Civic Memorial High School in Bethalto….Southern Illinois University in Carbondale (the real SIU)….my family…..Western Texas College….

Not a big list.

The Kansas thing might throw you. I fell in love with KU basketball as a youngster when they recruited a dear friend. The hook was sunk.

But I wore my Cardinal stuff to Arlington because I could not even consider wearing a Ranger hat or jersey like Carol.

There were others who had the same problem. I saw other Cardinal gear. The lady behind me complimented me on my shirt and pointed to her hat…..a Cardinal hat…..and said “University City, Missouri.” I retorted….”Bethalto, Illinois.”

Then there was the poor putz who was trying to make the ATM work as I stood in line behind him. He was trying to stick the debit card in the cash disbursement slot. It all made sense-----He was wearing a Cub uniform. I give him credit----he was loyal. Stupid…but loyal.

The game was great. The Rangers are very good. The stadium is clean and the PR department was very impressive. It was a great product. But these folks don’t know about the ice cold frosty taste of a Budweiser and they don’t fry their all-beef hot dogs. They don’t understand. They think this is as good as it gets. They have never been to Busch Stadium.

I value loyalty.

Ride for the Brand, Bay-bee…..Viva El Birdos….Rock Chalk…..CM High, we’ll fight forever for her fame…..

Here’s to a good season for the Rangers.

Here’s to an eleventh world championship for the team that deserves my loyalty.