When they declared independence from Mexico, most people wouldn’t have bet on the success of that endeavor.
Texas, as an independent republic, should not have been possible. When the men gathered in Philadelphia for their convention, they had 13 colonies at their disposal and the enemy’s leadership was on the other side of the ocean.
For the Texans, their opponent – the self-styled Napoleon of the West – was preparing to slaughter the Alamo defenders in San Antonio. And everyone knew it.
The independence declared on March 2 was followed almost immediately by a series of retreats and defeats. The Mexican army was larger, better trained, and better provisioned. The Texians were none of those things.
Any observer would have been right to label it a lost cause. It had no real chance of success… And yet, nearly two centuries later, here we are.
What the people of Texas had, as was written in the open paragraph of the Texas Declaration of Independence, was a desire to ensure government existed to protect the “lives, liberty and property of the people.”
The people of Texas were determined to govern themselves in liberty. To do that, they put themselves “fearlessly and confidently” to the task, trusting not in themselves for success but the “Supreme arbiter of the destines of nations.”
What about us? Are we fearless and confident in pursuing the protection of life, liberty, and property? Do we trust in the machinations of politicians, or are we willing to fight faithfully for a just cause?
The brightness with which the Lone Star State shines in the world will reflect our answers and our actions.
