Mama don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys

Don't let 'em pick guitars and drive them old trucks

Make 'em be doctors and lawyers and such

Mama don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys

They'll never stay home and they're always alone

Even with someone they love.

Cowboys like smokey old pool rooms and clear mountian moringin's

Little warm puppies and children and girls of the night

And them that don't know him won't like him

And them that do sometimes won't know how to take him

He ain't wrong he's just different

but his pride won't let him do things to make you think he's right

Rachel put away the case file and locked the cabinet. It was Country Night!

She strode out to her Mercedes SLK convertible and popped the top. The warm, muggy Houston air didn't bother her. She wanted to feel the wind in her hair. She gunned the car on the way to pick up Sarah from day care.

Sarah grinned when she saw the top was down. "Oh goody, I love riding in the car when you have the top down! Can I pick out the music?"

"Sure thing, darlin', as long as it's either country or western." Rachel winked. "Your pick."

"Why thank ya, ma'am," Sarah drawled.

Willy Nelson's gravel voice sounded through the crystal clear Bose system, "Mama don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys..."

"So, what do you and Daddy have planned tonight?"

"Well, I tried to get him to have tea with Mrs. Bunny and me tonight."

Rachel bit her lip to limit her laugh to a snort.

"But Daddy said he'd take me to Dave and Busters!" Unable to contain her excitement, Sara hopped around in her seat.

Rachel shook her head. Leave it to Daniel to get her all wound up so she can crash later. Well, at least she'll sleep like a log tonight. She grinned to herself. Maybe he WANTS her to sleep like a log so we don't have to be quiet tonight. Her grin widened. The evening was looking better all the time!

Rachel looked at herself in the mirror. "You still got it, girl!" she told her reflection as she rotated to check out the skin-tight jeans. She was proud of the firmness she saw and carefully ignored the wrinkles that she didn't want to see ... not if she wanted to stay in a good mood.

She slipped off her extravagant diamond ring, put it in her jewelry box, and slipped on her wedding band. It was gorgeous and expensive but not ostentatious.

Country Night was her escape from being the dutiful, elegant society woman Daniel needed to advance from senior partner to named parter. Even worse than corporate events, she escaped the political events needed to support her clients. No, Thursday nights were hers.

Daniel certainly enjoyed his special daddy-time with Sarah. All too soon, she wouldn't want to spend so much time with her papa. Until that time, she'd remain Daddy's Little Princess. As a Daddy's girl, Sarah would never really outgrow being his princess, but the special father-daughter days were numbered.

It's not easy growing up Jewish in Texas. Rachel was always between worlds. She loved Texas and Texans, but it's part of the Bible Belt. Like other Jews through the centuries, she was part of the local culture while remaining apart. The Jewish schools helped her feel like she belonged to a larger group while leaving her feeling more isolated than ever. Country music was her bridge. The music and lyrics expressed the struggles, joys and sorrows of real people living real lives. Although she would never admit it to her mother, country music inspired her to go into public advocacy. She didn't fight for abstract causes; she fought for real people with real problems.

Leaving the Mercedes in the garage, she jumped into her F150 truck. Of course, it was the Lariat version with the leather seats and upgraded sound system. There's no need for a girl to suffer just because she's goin' country!

She grinned as she remembered when they bought the truck. Daniel proclaimed, "You have ta have the right tool to do the job right!" In his mind, that translated into a truck for Country Night. She let him do all the research and haggling and just enjoyed being up high every once in awhile.

Making her way to the Wagon Wheel, she anticipated an ice cold long neck. There's nothing like the freedom of drinking beer right out of the bottle. No dainty sips out of fine crystal tonight. No business attire. Nope, it was beer, tight-fitting jeans and country music night! Although country music and its cowboys was a world she could only visit, never inhabit, nothing would stop her from enjoying her visits.

Like usual, she got there early so she could enjoy the music before the oil crews got too rowdy. America's 21st Century cowboys still had all the grit and independence of their horse-riding predecessors, but the modern cowboys worked in the dangerous oil and gas industry. It sure was fun hanging out with folks who knew how to work hard, play hard and enjoy the fruits of their hard labors. Their honesty and independence offered a refreshing break from her downtrodden clients and Daniel's downtrodding corporate clients.

At last, the music started. Spotting Jim Whatshisname, Rachel flashed a smile & batted her eyelashes.