Have you ever learned a life-lesson from just being somewhere, simply based on how the place feels? Has the ocean taught you anything? What about the mountains or rivers? For example, the ocean has shown me that I am small and weak, teaching me humility. The mountains have made me feel loved and strong. I am passionate about learning from this beautiful God-made earth. I was very nervous about moving away from my mountains, to a big city with hardly any natural landmarks to learn from. I never expected a busy city to teach me in a similar way that nature does.
Most big cities are built along waterways. Oceans and rivers make it convenient for residents to survive, trade, build, etc. The city of Dallas is not conveniently placed. Think about it! There’s no huge water source, no topographical guiding route to get here, and no protection based on landscape*. It doesn’t really make sense that Dallas is such a successful place. This is what I find so inspiring though! Someone (John Neely Bryan to be exact) decided he wanted a city here, and despite limited resources, he made it happen. He created the Dallas vibe and set the precedence of how people should view their opportunity here.
Dallas is what you make it. I find this a motivating life lesson! It’s up to you to build the life you want, and you can do it even if it doesn’t come easy. If you want close friends, a great career, to be better at this or that, you can have it, if you put in the work. This city is constantly dropping hints that you can succeed. Dallas radiates hope and evidence that hard work pays off.
Not only have I learned from the city itself, but I’ve learned from the people here. The journey of hard-work doesn’t have to be lonely. There are so many transplants in Dallas, relying on strangers instead of relying on family. These strangers have taught me how to be successful without being competitive. If I had to describe the people of Dallas in two words, the words would be “supportive” and “ambitious”. As a whole, we understand that we are all working to better our futures, and that we don’t have to do it alone.
The city isn’t perfect, and I do miss my mountains. I hope to move back to a place of outdoor adventure one day, but for now I am so glad we are learning the lessons that Dallas is teaching us. I believe that this place has already made us more confident, ambitious, and friendly. We have certainly grown here, but still have plenty to learn and work on. Thanks to Dallas, we believe that we will grow as long as we’re putting ourselves out there and trying our hardest. It’s pretty cool living in a city with this vibe.
*”Hardly” would probably be a better word than “no” in this sentence. Dallas was built along the Trinity River. Heard of it? Probably not because it’s so relatively small. I’ve thought to myself “This is the river that our city was founded on?”
