There are two kinds of Kansas Citians. There are the natives and then there are the "natives." The former were born here. They have marked the passage of years by the golden-hued sunsets of autumn, dripping like honey from the white branches of sycamores that grace this city. Those delicate trees, like a company of ballet dancers, stretch their white arms, pivoting and prancing in the gusty winds across Kansas City's soft green hillsides.
They have reveled in September watercolor landscapes not obscured by the pollution that has accompanied progress in other well-intentioned metropolises. They have seen their city survive floods, fires, and uprooting tornadoes that nearly yanked away everything at times -- everything but the hopes and optimism of a diligent people who have learned how to cope with the elements.
They now watch proudly and unabashedly as Kansas City comes into its economic spring. Buffered by its growing national reputation as an affordable and good place to live, and by the gold-rush mentality of Fortune 500 companies, of which more than 200 have offices here, Kansas City gingerly unfolds. It captivates its residents and could-be residents with a quality that will bring them back time and time again -- a homeyness, a friendliness that forms the marrow of life in Kansas City.
Kansas City is a family town. It is a community...a place where people commune with each other.
It is no surprise, then, that there is a second kind of "native." They came from other shores to this City of Kansas (as it was reincorporated in 1853, first being the Town of Kansas) at the confluence of the Missouri and Kaw rivers. Some may have come here via job relocations, or quite by accident, popped here from other places like ice cubes from one of those plastic trays you twist. Everyone's twist of fate is a little bit different.
However they come to call themselves Kansas Citians, a commonality tends to develop.
Kansas City is a family town. It is a community...a place where people commune with each other.
It is no surprise, then, that there is a second kind of "native." They came from other shores to this City of Kansas (as it was reincorporated in 1853, first being the Town of Kansas) at the confluence of the Missouri and Kaw rivers. Some may have come here via job relocations, or quite by accident, popped here from other places like ice cubes from one of those plastic trays you twist. Everyone's twist of fate is a little bit different.
However they come to call themselves Kansas Citians, a commonality tends to develop.
