The trail was quiet and lonely,
The cattle had long gone to sleep.
The old cowhand watched from a ridge top,
With no company but the stars now to keep.
And as cowboys sometimes do,
The gruff man lifted his head,
He spoke out to God in the heavens,
With feeling the old cowpoke said,
"Lord, I know I'm not special,
I've spent Sundays and weekdays galore
Just tending to heads of cattle,
And this old countryside I'd explore.
I know I've not been to meeting,
I know I've been wretched with sin,
But I'm talking to You of tomorrow,
And what may be awaiting me then.
If I could have a corner of heaven,
That's rustic and rural and strong,
With starlight and campfires and guitars,
Why I think I just might belong.
When I go, can you fill my tomorrows
With good friends and laughter and song,
In a place that is far from the city,
A place where my heart won't feel wrong?
On weekends, could there be a rodeo
Where everyone just does their best?
And can I watch every sunrise
And not feel the need now to rest?
In my tiny corner of heaven,
I'd ask for so little you see,
But I cannot spend my tomorrows
In a place where my soul can't be free."
And the cowpoke finished his prayer,
And he silently bowed his head.
In the morning when his buddies relieved him,
They found the old cowboy was dead.
But he got his corner of heaven
For the Lord had answered his plea,
Just starlight and campfires and music
And a soul that is peaceful and free.
Author notes
I know a lot of cowboys... and I know a few cowboy poets...but this is my first attempt at cowboy poetry. I enjoyed the ride.
A contest entry
- Cowboy Roots by Breaking Point.
300 points, ended June 5, 2007, 9 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Please tell me what you think
Comments
1 - 13 of 13
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oooo i love this poem! it has a great ending and is a true cowboy's tale great write.
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Wow. I loved it.
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AWESOME! I loved it.. there were a few rough patches but over all it was awesome. Great write and thanks for the entry.
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Now that the contest is over, I have to ask... what did you consider the rough patches? (you mentioned rough patches in your comment) I am always striving to get better and I am not asking out of hurt feelings or anything like that (after all, I did win the gold---grins) but I believe that everyone can improve and I cannot correct what I don't know to be the rough places. Thank you so much for your time.
P.S. I love cowboy poetry. I often read it and have a small collection of books that contain it. Thank you so much for this contest.
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As a first attempt at cowboy poetry I have to say you nailed it . A great piece that i enjoyed reading It had good flow and rhyme.All in all a well thought out and written poem If I did have a little trouble it would be with the word WENT in the second line I think maybe GONE would sound better But this is only my opinion and does not detract from an excellent poem Good luck in the contest
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This is amazing. The passing on of a cowboy and his final wish is touching. I don't know where within you, you found this but you should bring that out as often as possible! BRAVO!!!
. Rewarded 4
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I like this a lot
the reflection of the cowboy spirit is very nice: plain words, simple wishes, and no city folk...PK
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very good job. it was an awesome poem. i really enjoyed reading it! so good job!!
. Rewarded 4
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I say the last 4 lines really threw me off a bit. It was excellent until that point. It just kind of... well... too much. Otherwise... good job!
. Rewarded 4
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This is a wonderful lament. What I got from this was he had already found his heaven.
Lovely
John
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I disagree I think the poem worked well, ending and all. I coud see it in my mind. I think we all have an ideal what we hope heaven is like. Think we are all in for a surprise.
. Rewarded 4
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I really enjoyed this piece. Reminds me a lot of Badger Clark's "A Cowboy's Prayer" which is probably the most well known cowboy poem there is. The flow and rhythm of this piece is exceptional. I'll be bookmarking this one.
Rory
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I think the ending was a little cheap. You really wrote a good poem until you tried to make a point. You had said this and so much more already. Metaphysics should never be literal.
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