The courtroom was very quiet as the judge was reading the grand jury report to himself. I was seated along with the other members of the grand jury panel in the jury box as we waited for whatever the next step would be. I had no clue as it was my first time serving on a grand jury. Then the silence was broken when the judge laughed out loud. He looked over at us with a big grin and said, 'downtown Pipe Creek'? That was the late 70's so it was a little funnier than it may seem to you now.
Since that initial term on grand jury I served three more times before I reached the age where we all are likely to be put out to pasture. All those years we spend getting smarter and gaining life experiences and then just when we know it all, they don't need us anymore. Let me tell you it is a bit sad when I compare that first experience with the last one sitting in a grand jury deliberation room. It breaks my heart to see what the area of my raisin' has become.
It's true that the small town feel of Bandera is slipping away rapidly with each passing day. It's something the young folks and many in the Johnny-come-lately crowd can't see. They certainly can't feel it because they never lived it. Their actions and opinions are very telling as they only see a bright future that fits their personal needs. For them there is little connection to the past. Thankfully there are others who continue to fight on in what seems to be a losing battle to preserve our history.
Sometimes I ask myself if things are really that much different or do people just look at things differently. It's always the same answer, both are true. I like visiting with the old timers because they still act, think and talk like we did back in the day. Sadly they are rapidly disappearing from my trips to the post office where we used to gather for a quick chat. My uncle Tommy Kindla, Squeaky Evans and Telvy Robbins were frequently available there to give me advice and set me straight on how they viewed things going on in town.
I have found a few ways to deal with the changes or a least make believe that things aren't really that different. I can sneak in the back door of the Silver Dollar during the week have a beer with a friend and still be back home before school lets out or the banks close. I see that as a win considering what we have to deal with on Main Street here in modern day Bandera.
Even the chickens, ducks and geese have adjusted and developed a method of dealing with school day traffic as they make their way to the 11th Street parking lot next to Stein's Clothiers in the morning for the daily offerings of cat food. I used to walk that area daily but I would recommend going down by 'The Loop' now as it is way more user friendly. It has little to do with cocky roosters threatening attack. It's more about angry drivers running late to drop kids off for school. Sunday mornings are a bit more peaceful here in Polander Town as the only hazard might be a Mackerel Snapper running late for mass at St. Stanislaus Catholic Church.
I'm pretty comfortable with where I spend my Growing Up In Bandera days now. It's in the same part of town where I spent the majority of my younger life and I still have a few neighbors who like to revisit those days. I wouldn't think of trying to do some of the stuff we did as kids along the river. For one I'm too durn old and a lot of those things are now considered illegal. Go figure.
