--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Texan is what you are, not what you were…" description: "\"Texan is what you are, not what you were or might be.\" — Robert Ruark" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/robert-ruark-33313_might_texan-is-what-you-are-not-what-you-were_1924099.jpg" --- # Texan is what you are, not what you were or might be. ![“Texan is what you are, not what you were or might be.” quote by Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/robert-ruark-33313_might_texan-is-what-you-are-not-what-you-were_1924099.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/robert-ruark-33313_might_texan-is-what-you-are-not-what-you-were_1924099.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7fe/robert-ruark-33313_might_texan-is-what-you-are-not-what-you-were_1924099.jpg) > “Texan is what you are, not what you were or might be.” [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Identity is defined by current character, not past or potential selves. **In simple terms:** Who you are now matters most. Key Takeaway Embrace present self over past labels. Themes identity self present culture Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - Personal reflection - career counseling - social interaction Key Concepts Existentialism self‑definition Questions to Reflect On - What aspects of your identity are rooted in the past? - How can you honor future potential without being defined by it? A Different Perspective People may cling to past identities, hindering growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Texan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/texan/) ## Related quotes > [I think being a Texan - we sort of have that extra fire in us as a breed. I just felt like from day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-lambert/i-think-being-a-texan-we-sort-of-have-that-extra-fire-in-us-as-a/) [Miranda Lambert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-lambert/) > [Rich, poor, Panhandle, Gulf, city, country, Texas is the obsession, the proper study, and the passionate possession of all Texans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/rich-poor-panhandle-gulf-city-country-texas-is-the-obsession-the/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [To the goggling unbeliever Texans say, as people always say about their mangier dishes, 'But it's just like chicken, only tenderer.' Rattlesnake is, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alistair-cooke/to-the-goggling-unbeliever-texans-say-as-people-always-say-about/) [Alistair Cooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alistair-cooke/) > [If you've ever driven across Texas, you know how different one area of the state can be from another. Take El Paso. It looks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-trevino/if-you-ve-ever-driven-across-texas-you-know-how-different-one-area-of/) [Lee Trevino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-trevino/) > [Texans don't bury their failures. They get inspired by them. They take their failures and turn them into rallying cries. Failure inspires Texans to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/texans-don-t-bury-their-failures-they-get-inspired-by-them-they-take/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [We are witnessing a great awakening. Millions of Texans, millions of Americans are rising up to reclaim our country, to defend liberty and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/we-are-witnessing-a-great-awakening-millions-of-texans-millions-of/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [The foundation for future prosperity is built on the bedrock of good jobs and great schools. We are building a strong foundation one job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perry/the-foundation-for-future-prosperity-is-built-on-the-bedrock-of-good/) [Rick Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perry/) > [Those blue eyes glinted with uncivilized suggestion. A faint smile was tucked in the corner of his wide mouth. Definitely wouldn't want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/those-blue-eyes-glinted-with-uncivilized-suggestion-a-faint-smile-was/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [I've definitely seen that Texas is certainly a right-wing area politically. I think if you talk to the average Texan, some people may still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-metcalfe/i-ve-definitely-seen-that-texas-is-certainly-a-right-wing-area/) [Jesse Metcalfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-metcalfe/) > [Texas is not a civilized place. Texans shoot one another a lot. 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Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [I think provincialism is an endemic characteristic with mankind, I think everybody everywhere is provincial, but it is particularly striking with Texans, and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/i-think-provincialism-is-an-endemic-characteristic-with-mankind-i/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [I'm an American by birth, but I'm a Texan by the Grace of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-gatlin/i-m-an-american-by-birth-but-i-m-a-texan-by-the-grace-of-god/) [Larry Gatlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-gatlin/) > [Alabama soldiers, all I ask of you is to keep up with the Texans!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-lee/alabama-soldiers-all-i-ask-of-you-is-to-keep-up-with-the-texans/) [Robert E. 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That, I s’pose, is why one day you wake up suddenly and you ain’t a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/time-just-seems-to-fly-away-for-a-boy-that-i-s-pose-is-why-one-day/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [A man can build a staunch reputation for honesty by admitting he was in error, especially when he gets caught at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/a-man-can-build-a-staunch-reputation-for-honesty-by-admitting-he-was/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [A fish, which you can't see, deep down in the water, is a kind of symbol of peace on earth, good will to yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/a-fish-which-you-can-t-see-deep-down-in-the-water-is-a-kind-of-symbol/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [But phony, Hemingway was not, and poseur he was not. He did not shoot lions and leopards because he was searching for the answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/but-phony-hemingway-was-not-and-poseur-he-was-not-he-did-not-shoot/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [When I get up at five in the morning to go fishing, I wake my wife up and ask, 'What'll it be dear, sex…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/when-i-get-up-at-five-in-the-morning-to-go-fishing-i-wake-my-wife-up/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [“When we take away from a man his traditional way of life, his customs, hi religion, we had better make certain to replace it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/when-we-take-away-from-a-man-his-traditional-way-of-life-his-customs/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [Any time a boy is ready to learn about guns is the time he’s ready, no matter how young he is, and you can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/any-time-a-boy-is-ready-to-learn-about-guns-is-the-time-he-s-ready-no/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [If they keep exposing you to education, you might even realize some day that man becomes immortal only in what he writes on paper,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/if-they-keep-exposing-you-to-education-you-might-even-realize-some/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [Never knew a man not to be improved by a dog.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/never-knew-a-man-not-to-be-improved-by-a-dog/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [Rich, 'the Old Man said dreamily, 'is not baying after what you can't have. Rich is having the time to do what you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/rich-the-old-man-said-dreamily-is-not-baying-after-what-you-can-t/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [Hunting is the noblest sport yet devised by the hand of man. There were mighty hunters in the Bible, and all the caves where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/hunting-is-the-noblest-sport-yet-devised-by-the-hand-of-man-there/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [If a man does away with his traditional way of living and throws away his good customs, he had better first make certain that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/if-a-man-does-away-with-his-traditional-way-of-living-and-throws-away/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > [You might as well learn that a man who catches fish or shoots game has got to make it fit to eat before he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/you-might-as-well-learn-that-a-man-who-catches-fish-or-shoots-game/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) > ['The best thing about hunting and fishing,' the Old Man said, 'is that you don't have to actually do it to enjoy it. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ruark/the-best-thing-about-hunting-and-fishing-the-old-man-said-is-that-you/) [Robert Ruark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) [Explore all 15 Robert Ruark quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ruark/) ## More Might quotes > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. 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To summarize the final…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-b-wilderson-iii/black-music-has-always-known-and-not-been-afraid-to-acknowledge-just/) Frank B. Wilderson III > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [ Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. Before then \[these?\],… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/next-came-the-patent-laws-these-began-in-england-in-1624-and-in-this/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) > [Certainly, it is. Love is love, and loss is loss. We all love, and we all die, and everyone suffers the pain of grieving.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynsay-sands/certainly-it-is-love-is-love-and-loss-is-loss-we-all-love-and-we-all/) [Lynsay Sands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynsay-sands/) > [Talented people can predict with great accuracy what's about to happen just a tiny bit ahead of their competitors. 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