Letters to J Archives - Page 2 of 3

Jeston is a former student of Texas A&M, the author of the Jesse Granger: Bushranger series, and an avid wildlife conservation advocate.

Saturday Down South

September 18, 2018 No Comments

Dear J,

This past weekend was nearly perfect. The Aggies won, there was a baptism, I got to hang out with my friends, I got to watch my little brother march into the game, and I got to see my all-time favorite missionary! I also went around campus and got a lot of good pictures for the polaroid album I’m making for my missionary’s birthday.

Baptism

On Saturday morning, one of my friends got baptized. It was a pretty incredible experience to witness. There were a lot of people there to support her. We sang some hymns and some of her close friends and family members bore their testimonies and gave talks on baptism and the gifts she’d be receiving. Her brother-in-law got the be the one to baptize her. That must have been awesome for the both of them. The missionaries also got up front and sang Come Thou Fount. They sounded pretty good!

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

After that I took some of the elders and my roommate to the Institute where we just hung out. The sisters came while my roommate was unveiling his list of the top missionaries he’s met so far. While the missionaries were pleading their cases on why they deserved to be higher on the list, I went across the street to campus so I could watch my brother march in. While I was waiting in the Quad for him, this lady and her family decided to stand directly in front of me. I didn’t move an inch. They were uncomfortably close to me but I was there first! For every selfie they took, I stared directly into the camera. I was basically breathing down the lady’s neck.

reveille and the corps

I ended up not seeing my brother because I couldn’t find him in the formations. All the corps guys basically look the same and I couldn’t find his squadron’s flag. I was there, though. At least I got some good polaroids of the Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band and one of Reveille (A&M’s mascot)! I’m a little torn on if I want to give the one of Reveille to my favorite missionary or if I want to keep it for myself. I think I can make the sacrifice for her!

Fightin' Texas Aggie band

After the Corps marched past me, I decided it would be the perfect time to go around to some iconic spots on campus and get some polaroids. It was some good timing because everyone was heading to the game so there weren’t that many people crowding the statues and landmarks that I wanted to get pictures of. My favorite pictures from that day were probably the ones of Sully, the Century Tree, and the big Aggie ring. In case you don’t know what those things are, I’ll explain them.

iconic Aggie statues

Sully

Lawrence Sullivan Ross was the first president of Texas A&M. It’s said that students used to go to his office to get help with their studies and they were so grateful for his help that they would offer to pay him. He wouldn’t accept their money but instead asked for a penny for their thoughts. That started the tradition of us putting a penny on Sully’s statue before we take an exam. Some people have tried to petition to get Sully’s statue taken down based the fact that he was a Confederate general and on an unfounded accusation that he was in the KKK. I am not one of those people and will not let Sully be taken down but that’s for another blog post.

more iconic statues and the century tree

The Century Tree

The Century Tree is a 100+ year old live oak and one of the first trees planted on the Texas A&M campus. The tradition goes that if you and your boyfriend or girlfriend walk under it together, you’ll get married and if you propose under it, your marriage will last forever. If I ever propose, I’m gonna try and do it under that tree but we’ll see. Some people also say that if you walk under it alone, you’ll be forever alone. I used to have a class right on the other side of the tree where it would be easier to walk under it than around it. Even in the pouring rain, I would walk all the way around that tree. Couldn’t risk it.

Aggie Ring

The Aggie ring is probably one of the most recognizable symbols of Texas A&M. Every Aggie has the opportunity to get one once they’ve completed 90 hours. It’s a huge deal to get one. You’re basically wearing you blood, sweat, and tears right there on your finger and showing the world that you’re an Aggie. Aggies get their rings on their designated Ring Day at the Alumni Center. In front of the center is a massive replica of the Aggie ring that people love to take pictures under.

Aggie ring dunk

Another tradition involving the ring is the Ring Dunk. Once you get that thousand dollar ring, you drop it in a pitcher full of beer. Then you chug the pitcher and catch the ring in your teeth! It took me about a minute to finish my pitcher and then I threw up right after. I was one of the last people who got to have a pitcher with the original (read: not hideous or created by Nike) TAMU seal on it. The board of regents went ahead and ruined everything after that. But that’s also for another blog post.

Proselytizing

After I finished sweating to death in the pursuit of the perfect polaroids for my missionary, I took the other missionaries around campus (looking for potential investigators just in case anyone asks). They actually got a Corps guy who was interested in learning more. Here’s how that conversation started off:

Cadet: What are y’all doing here all dressed up?

Elder: We’re missionaries from the church.

Cadet: Oh cool what church?

Elder: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Cadet: Oooh Mormons!

Elder: …yes *sorry President Nelson*

Bonfire Memorial

After that I showed them the Reveille graveyard (we’re on Reveille IX right now) and then we went to the Bonfire Memorial. If you don’t know, A&M used to light a huge bonfire on campus before the annual Thanksgiving game. We still have one but we’re not allowed to have it on campus anymore.

The reason the school doesn’t it on campus is because on November 18, 1999 at 2:42 am, the bonfire collapsed and 12 Aggies lost their lives. It was a tragedy that rocked the community but also showed the resilience of the Aggie spirit. The memorial consists of a stone with the date and time of the collapse etched on its face surrounded by twelve portals. One portal for each victim. The portals have an etching of the Aggie along with some information about them. Each portal is facing the hometown of the Aggie it represents. You can learn more here.

It was a somber experience walking in the middle of that memorial at night. There was no one there but me and the elders. The only noise we could hear were the passing cars and a few shouts from Kyle Field. I hope they enjoyed the experience and were able to take something away from it. I know I was.

It was a great way to cap off a great day. The weekend ended on an even higher note but that’s going to get its own post.

-Jeston

Follow me: @DoHpodcast and @JestonTexeira

Jeston is a former student of Texas A&M, the author of the Jesse Granger: Bushranger series, and an avid wildlife conservation advocate.

I Love a Rainy Night

September 14, 2018 No Comments

Dear J,

It’s been a pretty rough week. Work has been hectic and with hurricanes coming, we’ve been getting tons of rain. I don’t think we’ll get hit by the hurricane, though. Last weekend I got to go see some of my missionaries out in Houston and it was so great because I’ve missed them so much! One of the sisters is going to be done with her mission in December so then I’ll finally be able to give her a hug (because sister missionaries aren’t allowed to hug guys on their mission).

I’m still working on that polaroid album for my favorite missionary. Since the weather’s been too terrible to take any good pictures, I’ve decided to hold off on giving it to her until her birthday which comes up in about a month. I’m still going to go see her this weekend, though. I’m going to give her a nice letter and one of those keys that’s actually a knife. The area they have her in is pretty sketchy so I have to give her a fighting chance. The knife isn’t that big but as long as she aims for the soft spots, she should be alright. She’s pretty tough.

Never Forget

polaroids of the 9/11 memorial

The pictures that were the hardest to get so far were the ones I took of the 9/11 memorial on campus. It was raining off and on that whole day but when I checked the radar, it said that the rain was going to stop around the time I got off of work. I thought that worked out perfectly. After work, I headed straight to the Institute because it’s right across from campus and not too far of a walk to the memorial. On the way to the memorial I saw my favorite missionary’s previous companion and told her happy birthday because her birthday’s on 9/11.

When I got to campus, I stopped by the statue of Pinky Wilson (the guy who wrote the Aggie War Hymn in a trench in France during WWI) so I could take a picture of him for the album. I think I wasted too much time on his picture because it came out too dark and it also started to rain a little bit while I was there. I had to fast walk over to the memorial to get the pictures I came for before the rain started to come down.

I finally got there and took a few pictures of the inscription on the memorial, the memorial itself, and some roses that were left on the memorial in honor of those who lost their lives. I think the rain just amplified the sadness I felt looking at those towers. But the inscription on the memorial always gives me a boost. It reads:

On the evening of his departure from Texas A&M to become the Secretary of Defense, Dr. Robert M. Gates offered a true “Aggieism” to the group of thousands of well wishers. His comment conveyed the clear purpose of his mission. He offered,

“BEAT THE HELL OUTTA TERRORISM”

And that’s exactly what we’re gonna do to em, Ags!

Even though I was soaking wet by the time I walked back to my truck, I wouldn’t have traded the rain for any amount of sunshine.

-Jeston

Follow me: @DoHpodcast and @JestonTexeira

Jeston is a former student of Texas A&M, the author of the Jesse Granger: Bushranger series, and an avid wildlife conservation advocate.

9/11: I Will Never Forget

September 11, 2018 No Comments

Dear J,

I can’t believe it’s already been seventeen years since 9/11. There are kids in high school right now who weren’t even born when it happened. There are also people like my brother who were way too young to remember what happened that day. I remember.

I was in first grade playing in the computer lab that morning. I think I was playing a game called Kid Pix. It was sort of like a better version of Microsoft Paint for kids. You could draw all kinds of stuff and the computer lab lady would let us print off our masterpieces and take them home. After our computer lab time was over, we went back to class but on the way there, I remembered that I had forgotten my print out in the computer lab and asked to go back and get it.

When I got back to the computer lab, the lady had the TV on. She had her hand over her mouth and looked like she was about to cry. I don’t think she even knew I was there. I looked at the TV and saw a tall building on fire. At first, I didn’t understand what was going on. I thought maybe there was just a big fire going on. I could read enough of the words flashing on screen to figure out that an airplane had flown into the tower. It wasn’t too long after that the computer lab lady and I watched the second plane fly into the South tower.

I left a sobbing woman in the computer lab and ran back to my classroom. I didn’t know why this was happening but I figured America was under attack. I didn’t know if Texas or even my little elementary school was going to be hit but I had to warn my class. I threw the door open and told my teacher that two big planes had flown into buildings in New York. I didn’t know they were called the Twin Towers and I didn’t know what else to tell her. She thought I was making it up.

Word of the attack quickly spread around the school and we were all sent home early. My parents came and got me. They were pretty much silent and in disbelief the entire car ride home. My little sister didn’t know what was happening and my little brother was just a baby. We got back to our trailer and watched the rest of the coverage on the news.

The rest of my memories from that time period are pretty scattered but I have a crystal clear memory of where I was and what was going on when those planes hit the towers. It’s seared into my mind and every year that wound is made fresh again. I was made aware that there were people out there who hated my way of life, who hated my freedom, and who hated me. I was scared but I was also determined to never let them succeed and to never forget the lives taken and the sacrifices made that September morning.

I will never forget the heroism of the first responders and the passengers of Flight 93. They showed that Americans live and die for one another and will NEVER go down without a fight.

I will never forget the way our country united in the aftermath of that tragic day. I’ve never felt as much of a sense of unity, comraderie, and patriotism as I did immediately following that day. Instead of tearing us apart, this tragic event brought us closer together than ever before.

I will never forget 9/11.

I can’t.

Each year, my throat closes up and tears fill my eyes and I remember.

It’s the least we can do.

-Jeston

Follow me: @DoHpodcast and @JestonTexeira

Jeston is a former student of Texas A&M, the author of the Jesse Granger: Bushranger series, and an avid wildlife conservation advocate.

Saturday Night Fever

September 6, 2018 No Comments

Dear J,

Sorry this letter’s late. I’ve been pretty busy lately. I’m going to start trying to put headers before each section of my letters. That should save you from having to power through a bunch of rambling and nonsense. There will still be plenty of nonsense, though. But we’ll try this out for a little bit and if it ends up not working out, I’ll switch it up.

It’s Jimbo Time

texasaggieband

COLLEGE FOOTBALL IS BACK! I’ve been waiting for seems like an eternity to say those words. Life between the final touchdown of the championship game and the first kickoff of the season was basically a sham. Now it’s the real deal. We can all stop pretending like we’re happy and actually BE happy! Plus, it’s JIMBO TIME! The big question is, is he worth $75 million? We’ll find out this season. Hopefully we don’t end up 8-5 again. I don’t think my Fightin’ Texas Aggie heart can take it. I really wanted Dabo Swinney to come here instead and I’m sort of getting my wish this weekend. Too bad he’ll probably be murdering us on the field. It can’t be any worse than blowing a 30+ point lead like we did last year to UCLA. Can it?

Big Man Off Campus

Also, since school’s back in session, my friends are all back! It was pretty lonely over the summer with only my roommate and his rabbit to hang out with. Living in a college town sucks sometimes if you don’t go tot the college anymore. The good part, though, is that there’s barely any traffic when all the students are gone. But then you have no one to hang out with if your friends are students. I got to see the missionaries some but they were usually busy ministering to lost souls and I didn’t want to interfere with that. Somebody’s gotta do the Lord’s work. But it has been good to see everybody. I’ve been trying to get more involved in group activities even though being in big groups makes me uneasy. Maybe I’ll get over it.

Could You Take My Picture?

I’ve been working on a little project lately. I’m going to go visit my favorite missionary next weekend and I didn’t want to show up empty handed. I love giving people gifts, especially when I know it’s something they’ll like. I put a lot of thought into the gifts I give even though most people don’t notice. This missionary loves photography so I figured a gift related to photography would be perfect. She’s also been sent to a rough part of Texas for her next mission ward and it’s taken a toll on her happiness with our great state. I have an Instax camera and decided for her gift that I would put together a polaroid photo album of nice Texas things and things that would remind her of College Station. Maybe she’ll look at the pictures with fondness and it’ll make her miss us. I don’t want anyone to leave Texas without loving it. Except hippies.

polaroids

I hope everything’s going well for you, J. It sucks talking to you when you can’t talk back but one day that’ll change. I’ll try to send the letter on time next time. Sorry.

I miss you.

-Jeston

Follow me: @DoHpodcast and @JestonTexeira

Jeston is a former student of Texas A&M, the author of the Jesse Granger: Bushranger series, and an avid wildlife conservation advocate.