Monday, January 22, 2007


the story of john connally

I'm quite sure not many of us have heard of John Connally, nor heard of the things he has endured in his life.

John B. Connally was born at Floresville, Texas, on 27th February, 1917. He graduated from the University of Texas with a law degree, afterwhich, he joined the staff of Lyndon B. Johnson as legislative assistant. He soon took part in politics and was appointed as the Secretary of the Navy by then President John F. Kennedy. He held the post until being elected Governor of Texas in January, 1963.

One afternoon in November 1963, JFK had planned to visit the state of Texas which Conally was governor of. It was decided that Kennedy and his party, including his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, Governor John Connally and Senator Ralph Yarborough, would travel in a procession of cars through the business district of Dallas. A pilot car and several motorcycles rode ahead of the presidential limousine.

As well as Kennedy the limousine included John Connally, his wife Nellie Connally, Roy Kellerman, head of the Secret Service at the White House and the driver, William Greer. The next car carried eight Secret Service Agents. This was followed by a car containing Johnson and Yarborough.

At about 12.30 p.m. the presidential limousine entered Elm Street. Soon afterwards shots rang out. John Kennedy was hit by bullets that hit him in the head and the left shoulder. Another bullet hit John Connally in the back. Ten seconds after the first shots had been fired the president's car accelerated off at high speed towards Parkland Memorial Hospital.

Both men were carried into separate emergency rooms. Connally had wounds to his back, chest, wrist and thigh. Kennedy's injuries were far more serious. He had a massive wound to the head and at 1 p.m. he was declared dead.

Connally went on to make a full recovery but apart from his physical wounds, there was also the psychological trauma that he endured.

A life-threatening experience has a way of rearranging one’s priorities. That was true in the lives of former Texas Governor John Connally and his wife after he was wounded by the assassin who took the life of President John F. Kennedy in 1963.

In an interview after he had recovered, Connally explained,

"As far as Nellie and I are concerned, ... it inevitably brought into sharper focus what’s really important in life. ... We try not to participate in things that are shallow or in the long run meaningless."





Now let's re-evaluate our lives. What are the things that we are currently doing in our lives that we find so important right now that we cannot put it down for a moment?

Studies?
Work?
Earning as much as you possibly can?
Being able to hit the high score in a game?
Being able to have as many partners as possible?
Being able to enjoy life to the fullest?

If we were told that we had only weeks to live (JFK didn't enjoy this luxury), I'm sure we would lead a very different lifestyle from the one we are currently in today.

I for one, would not be playing that much games, or be on the computer for that matter, and would instead focus on building relationships with the people around me, telling them how important they are to me, and how much I love them. And I would also want to be spiritually rich and be able to be the Christian that I ought to be. To quote Connally, let's not participate in things that are shallow, or in the long run meaningless.

What about you?
How would your lifestyle be different if the measure of your days are short?