The Cost Of Waiting One Day Too Long

Episode Description 

History doesn’t just remember courage—it remembers hesitation. 

In today’s Texan Edge, Tweed Scott takes you to March 1836 and the open prairie near Goliad, where Colonel James Fannin and his men faced a decision that would shape Texas history. It wasn’t just the battle that mattered—it was the delay, the hesitation, the moment between knowing what to do and actually doing it. 

That space in between can cost more than we realize. 

This episode connects the tragic events leading to the Goliad Massacre with a challenge we all face today: the danger of staying too long when we know it’s time to move. 

Because sometimes the hardest place to be… is stuck in the middle.  

📝 Show Notes 

Episode Title: Don’t Get Caught in the Middle: The Lesson of Goliad 

What You’ll Hear: 

• A powerful retelling of events at Presidio La Bahía and the Battle of Coleto (March 1836)
• Colonel James Fannin’s difficult decision and delayed retreat
• How hesitation placed Texian forces in a vulnerable position
• The fight on the open prairie—courage under impossible conditions
• The tragic aftermath: the Goliad Massacre
• How “Remember Goliad” became a rallying cry alongside the Alamo

Key Insight:
The most dangerous place isn’t always the wrong decision—it’s the delay between decisions.

Historical Takeaway:
 

• Timing matters just as much as courage
• Being stuck between action and inaction can create the worst possible outcome
• Even strong people can hesitate—and history shows the cost

Today’s Challenge:
Ask yourself:
 

• Where am I hesitating right now?
• What decision have I been delaying?

Then:
 

1. Pray or reflect on it
2. Think it through clearly
3. Make a definite move—forward or back, but not stuck

Listener Reflection Prompt (for Substack / Engagement):
 

Where in your life are you “on the prairie”—not fully committed, not fully safe—and what clear decision do you need to make today?

Connection to the Bigger Story:
The tragedy at Goliad helped ignite the determination that led to victory at San Jacinto. Even in loss, there was a lesson—and a legacy.

Support the Show:
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Stay Connected:
 

• Substack (The Porch): Substack.com/TexanEdge

This isn't just a podcast, it's a Texas state of mind.

Transcript

Fannin’s Dilemma And Delay

Retreat, Encirclement, And Battle

Surrender And The Goliad Massacre

Turning History Into A Life Lesson

A Clear Challenge To Decide

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Well, hello there again. I'm Tweet Scott, and this is The Texan Edge. Today, I'd like you to step back with me to March of 1836 down around Goliath. Not the Alamo, that everybody knows that story already, but another quieter chapter that shaped the very soul of Texas. Colonel James Fannon and his men are at Presidio La Bahia, the old Spanish fort. They're worn down, short on supplies, and they knew the Mexican army under General José Uria is closing in. This is no movie I'm talking about. These are tired, hungry men trying to decide whether to stay put behind thick walls or take their chances out on the open prairie. On March the 18th, skirmishes begin to flicker like brush fires around the area, probing, testing, feeling out where the Texians are and how they'll react. Fannin hesitates. He delays his retreat. They finally leave La Bahia late on the 19th, wagons creaking, cannon rumbling, moving slow across that flat, exposed land. And by afternoon, they're surrounded. The Battle of Kalito is underway. Now I'm not here to second guess Bannon. That's easy enough to do from a comfortable chair. But at that moment, the hesitation between we ought to go and we're actually moving, that's the razor's edge where the history sometimes turns. Had they left earlier, they might have reached safer ground. Had they stayed fortified, well, the story might have been different. Instead, they ended up in the worst of both worlds, too far to turn back and too exposed to stand firm. The next day, March the nineteenth and into the twentieth, they fought hard in that open field. They formed a square, repelled charges, held their ground against long odds. But surrounded, low on water and ammunition, Fannon eventually surrendered, trusting that they'd be an honorable treatment. But we know now that that trust was betrayed. Within days, many of those men would be marched back to Goliad and executed. That is what the world would come to know as the Goliad Massacre. Why does that matter to you and me today? Well, all these years later, well, because every one of us has had a La Bahia moment probably in our lifetime. We know we need to move towards forgiveness, maybe, toward a new job, away from a toxic situation, but we hesitate. We convince ourselves that we've got more time. We let comfort and routine talk us into staying just a little bit longer, until suddenly we're out in the open, surrounded by consequences we can't even control. Now, I don't say that to scare anybody, but I gotta say, I say it to remind you that your decisions do matter, especially the ones you keep postponing. The men at Colido showed courage in the battle, their fate after surrender was an absolute tragedy. And that tragedy became part of the fuel that lit the fire for Sam Houston's army at San Yacinto. Remember Goliad joined remember the Alamo as a battle cry. And your challenge today, should you choose to accept it, it is simple. Where are you hesitating? Where are you halfway between staying and going and getting the worst of both? You may not be on a battlefield, but the stakes in your heart, your family, your future are real. Take time today to pray it through, think it through, and then make a clear choice. Don't live stuck in the middle of your prairie. I'm Tweed Scott, and this has been the Texan Edge. Texas was shaped by the courage of people who moved and by the cost when they waited too long. Let's learn from both of 'em. I'll meet you back here tomorrow. What do you say? See ya then.