1. United States
2. Texas
3. Letter

Hello, elected official who supposedly works for the people. We do not want a border wall between Texas and Mexico. We also don't want enhanced border surveillance. That's a "you being a bad person," thing. Not a "Texas" thing. I'm a single mom of five kids. Meaning, we're poor. Vacations were few, far between, and almost always to Turner Falls, OK or Galveston. However, one year, I was able to take the kids camping out at Big Bend. It was life-changing. We were an hour's drive from any cell service. We got lost that first night, trying to find our campground without maps on my phone. It was dark, darker than I'd ever seen. What would start out as a dirt road would quickly narrow and then become lost among the desert plants and rocks. But the dark...I knew of something that the dark would give to us, something we couldn't get anywhere else. The kids didn’t. I was honored that I’d get to be the one to introduce them. I eased my car to the side of the road, asked the kids to get out with me. I told them to each pick a spot near the car, and to stay there. They did. I pressed the key fob button to lock my car and we were plunged into total darkness. And those kids, most of them teenagers who were very cranky without working phones and being lost in the desert, they all softly gasped together, at the vision of the stars above Big Bend. How dare you take this from us? How dare you take this from all of Texas?Your priorities are wack. We should be sharing our abundance with others. We should be facilitating people’s relationship with the land. I swear to god, you people ruin every thing you touch, and just for your own enrichment. Do better. “Be Best” you fucks.