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HSB mayor’s monthly message

am halfway through my first year serving as the mayor of Horseshoe Bay. People often ask me, is it more time-consuming than you thought? More challenging? Are you enjoying it? The answers are yes, yes and yes. This month, I want to focus on that last question. I have been asking myself, “What is it about Horseshoe Bay that you love so much?” The answer is always the same. It is that the people who live here are happy.

I often think of an article that appeared inside the back cover of a Newsweek magazine a very long time ago. It was written by George Will and he talked about a bicycle in the window of his local hardware store when he was a young boy. He really, really wanted that bicycle, but his parents told him the only way he could have a new bike was to earn the money and buy it himself. He wrote about the ways he worked to earn money – mowing lawns, paper routes, all of the regular things boys did in the 50s. I don’t remember how long it took him to earn the money, but I remember he emphasized the joy he got out of walking by the store window and dreaming of owning that bike. He was gratified by the jobs he was doing because he had a goal and a dream. Then he expressed how he felt a letdown when he finally acquired the bicycle. He discovered that it was not as much fun to own the bicycle as it had been to dream of owning it.

George Will wrote about the difference between the joy of earning and the joy of owning. This concept applies to progress toward goals: well-adjusted, happy children, a successful non-profit organization, a healthy city budget, a thriving church or a happy marriage. It is not just about money. The point is that the joy comes from “the journey.” I believe that people in Horseshoe Bay, for the most part, understand that distinction and you invested yourself to get results. You moved here because you chose to and earned your way here. People in Horseshoe Bay are happy because they want to be here and want to spend time with others who feel the same. Nobody cares how much money anyone else has because you value people based on real standards, not artificial standards set by some shallow society. This is not true in every community – not by a long shot.

I believe that the appreciation of the joy of earning makes people happy. In this “instant gratification” world, giving in and buying it for children and grandchildren is often much easier. But then we deny them the joy they get from walking past the store window and dreaming.

Horseshoe Bay residents are happy for many reasons. Like most humans, we have always hoped for a good life, and now we can live in this beautiful place with so many unique ways to entertain ourselves right at our fingertips. But I also believe most people living in Horseshoe Bay are happy because they didn’t just skip to the joy of owning without enjoying and savoring that joy of earning.

As many of our neighbors are about to head west and north to enjoy the summer in cooler climates, I leave you with a final thought. It is a line from a song by one of my favorite Hill Country singers, Thomas Michael Riley. “Happiness isn’t something you find; it’s something you choose.”

Have a wonderful summer, and be happy. You can be comforted by the knowledge that so many people continuously work to make this community a great place to return to.

Texas Hill Country Magazine

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