It was refreshing! Every year the local Christmas parade across the old brick streets of the oldest town in Texas starts the same…a police car with lights on twirling red, white and blue flashes followed by men and women who have served in the military carrying the colors.

Maybe it’s the way people are addressing the flag right now in the U.S., or maybe it’s just as simple as a sign of respect, but something simple happened the other night that made me smile.

Everyone stood.

As the colors were presented and the bearers walked by, everyone rose to their feet. Everyone, on both sides of the parade, as far as I could see both ways stood up.

Every race, color, religion, gender, nationality, age…they all stood!

Men removed their hats. Some people applauded.

There are special things about small, country towns.  This is one.  It was respect, simple, honest, down to earth, respect.

After the flags went by, everyone settled in to comfortably watch the parade.

Maybe it’s just a local thing:

Howdy

Hey y’all!

Thank ya very much!

Yes ma’am.

No sir.

Excuse me.

Lemme get that door for ya.

Y’all be good now, ya hear?!

Have a good one!

Any way you slice it, it spells respect.

It’s not always present, and quite honestly, we need quite a bit more of it here too, but in the grand scheme of things, it seems like simple, respectful gestures help keep the doors and hearts of people open around here.

I’ve never known a kind person who wasn’t respectful.  Maybe it’s just a misnomer.  Maybe it’s a faulty observation.  Or maybe, maybe it’s why standing when the flag goes by goes a long way in making it a better place to live.

I don’t know….just thinking.