Loose Ends: Once a Westerner…

Most everyone’s view of the west is based on the romanticized, gussied-up version of this region of the country. Somehow the real picture of a Westerner gets lost in the shuffle and the qualities that represent those who struggled to make a living on the land recede into the background. Reliant on themselves for most everything, Westerners have always embodied independence, self-reliance, honesty and plain speaking.
Recently the first Westerner I’d encountered came to mind.