by Mackenzie Brim
To a city girl, the world of trains and stockyards only
exists in the movies and cartoons or as a tourist attraction, but for many
people the world of Texas past is their life, love and legacy. On a day trip to
the Fort Worth Stockyards, I interacted with some of the many people who live
their lives in what some would call a performance, but they are simply living
their reality.
While on
the train, I went for snacks and met a woman named Heather Thompson, who wanted
to be a flight attendant and, but was too short and settled for a train
attendant. Her day consists of cleaning, serving guests, and occasionally
declining an offer from swingers.
“I mean it’s public transportation, so I’ve
seen a lot of wild things. People of drugs, having sex in the bathroom and even
swingers, who I think had a crush on me.”
For the group of elementary school
students who were on the train recreating the Polar Express it is a fantasy,
but Heather has a wedding to help pay for and a mortgage,“It’s my life.”
After
disembarking the train and a short bus ride, I arrived at Stock Yard City, a
street lined with steakhouses and gift shops that leads to the stockyards. The
street also has a Forth Work Stockyard
Hotel was covered in wood paneling and old wallpaper, fitting perfectly with
the theme of the tourist attraction that is Stock yard city. Sitting on the
oversized maroon couches and laughing jollily was the Ivy family, the first to
settle in Texas as immigrants in the 1800s.
“You see a lot of people dressed up
as cowboys, but I’m a real cowboy,” said Mo Ivy, his smile lines deepening as
he spoke, his cowboy had still perfectly resting on his head.
“You now he’s a
real cowboy, because of his Belt Buckle,” said the son Tyler. Mo smiled and
showed off the belt proudly. His family was ranchers and coming to cattle
drives was how they obtained the livestock to provide for their business.
Learning more about a culture that was only 130 miles away from where I grew up was a great experience and set the framework to learn over 2,000 miles away.
Mackenzie Brim
mackenziebrim.com
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