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    Have a better idea?

    Looking to legends to bring some rain: The end of one drought brought Texas bluebonnets

    Terry St. John
    Aug 23, 2011 | 8:24 am
    News_Bluebonnet_field_rolling_hills
    The next morning when She-Who-Is-Alone and the villagers awoke, they saw that the hills were covered with beautiful blue flowers, the same color as the doll’s feathers. They knew it was a sign from the Great Spirit. Soon it began to rain, and the drought was ended.
    Photo via Real Texas

    Emails from MoveOn.org urge me to help make Texas a blue state.

    That's hard to do, because we all know Texas is a red state in more than just politics these days. The weather graphic of the state looks like a blistering hot frying pan.

    Texas is cocooned by something the weather folks call a high pressure level, which repels any significant moisture. As someone who can barely identify a cumulus cloud from a cirrus one, it’s still a mystery to me. What can we do except pray, hope, cope and watch our green lawns wither to brown?

    What did our ancestors do? They prayed, hoped, coped and watched their crops turn brown. And without the knowledge of modern meteorology, sometimes it was logical to blame the drought on the gods.

    What can we do except pray, hope, cope and watch our green lawns wither to brown?

    A multitude of legends have been spawned by a society’s attempts to convince these fickle gods to send a little downpour their way. In desperation, people promised to sacrifice their most prized possessions —sometimes a virgin or a prized animal or a piece of valued property.

    In the good legends, the skies open up just before the horrible deed, and the verdant landscape returns, the crops are saved and the people rejoice. You usually don’t hear about those sacrifices that didn’t work. Not good folklore.

    My favorite legend is still one that J. Frank Dobie recorded in his Tales of Old Time Texas and one that I shyly recited to my first-grade classmates at Eastwood Elementary School (now Dora B. Lantrip Elementary). It goes like this:

    She-Who-Is-Alone was a young Comanche orphan living in Texas a long time ago. Her parents and her entire family had died during the drought. There was no rain to grow the crops. The people were sick and dying, and the horses and buffalo were suffering. The leaders prayed to the Great Spirits, played the drums and danced asking for help.

    Finally one of the leaders said that the Great Spirits wanted them to make a sacrifice. Everyone had to give up their most valuable possession.

    She-Who-Is-Alone had only one thing that she loved — the little doll her grandmother had made for her out of buffalo skin. The face was painted with berry juice, and beautiful blue bird feathers adorned its head. It was the only thing she had left from her family.

    But she knew what she had to do. That night she crept out from her teepee, bringing her doll with her to the fire. She kissed her doll and said, “O Great Spirit, here is the only thing I have. It is very special. Please send the rain.”

    She threw her doll into the fire and watched as the fire consumed it. When the fire grew cold, she scooped up some ashes and threw them to the winds.

    The next morning when She-Who-Is-Alone and the villagers awoke, they saw that the hills were covered with beautiful blue flowers, the same color as the doll’s feathers. They knew it was a sign from the Great Spirit. Soon it began to rain, and the drought was ended.

    The villagers changed She-Who-Is-Alone’s name to One-Who-Dearly Loves-Her-People. And each spring when the fields are covered with bluebonnets, we are reminded of the little’s maiden’s sacrifice.

    Terry St. John is a Houston native who's never seen a summer as hot as this one.

    My favorite legend is still one that J. Frank Dobie recorded in his Tales of Old Time Texas.

      
    unspecified
    news/city-life

    deals for dogs

    Houston Humane Society hosts 'name your price' adoption event

    Jef Rouner
    Jun 3, 2025 | 3:00 pm
    A mixed breed dog looks up at the camera at a Houston Humane Society facility.
    Photo courtesy of Houston Humane Society
    Hello. My name is Stitch.

    Houstonians looking to bring home a new dog or cat this month have a chance to do so at a steep discount. The Houston Humane Society is hosting a "name your price" adoption event throughout June.

    "Love has no price tag, and neither should the joy of having a pet," the Houston Humane Society said in a statement.

    Adoptions usually cost between $50 and $195. For the entire month, all adoptions of dogs and cats one year or older will be purely pay what you can. Puppies and kittens will remain the same price. Adoptions come with spay/neuter surgeries, microchipping, vaccinations, nail trims, and hair cleanings.

    Texas has long had a significant homeless pet problem. The state ranks number one in terms of most animals killed in shelters annually, 35 percent higher than California, a state with 8 million more people. According to the Houston Humane Society, they are caring for over 500 animals at this time, 150 of which are currently available for adoption. These include 100 dogs, 46 cats, and six rabbits. Thirty-one of the animals are in long-term shelter housing, and the "name your price" event aims to reduce that population in particular.

    While the event can be a boon for struggling families who want to bring home a furry friend on a small budget, the Houston Humane Society still needs donations and fees to operate. In 2024, they distributed over 800,000 pet meals to animals in need, as well as conducting more than 11,000 spay-neuter surgeries and providing veterinary services for over 28,000 animals. Houston Humane Society ultimately homes 2,500 animals last year.

    For 67 years, the Houston Humane Society has been one of the leading forces in reducing the homeless pet population in the city. Regularly, they pair adoptions and community engagement with events around the city, including fun runs, chili cook-offs, and the Yappy Easter Event. It is the only regional shelter with low-cost veterinary services available to the public. For more information on the animals available for adoption and and the process of offering a forever home, visit the Houston Humane Society website.

    petsadopt a pet
    news/city-life

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