Cowboy Tears

Sadness filled his heart
As the old cowboy sat
In the saddle that day;
First time, in many years.

His thoughts rambled
To a time so long ago
When he would ride out.
Down rolled sullen tears.

He used to love the excitement
Of the wide open spaces
And the happiness he felt
Riding the range those years

There were so many stories of
Wyatt and Doc and ole Wild Bill
Some of it true and some of it not.
In his Wild West there were no fears.

The grand beauty of the Sierras
And the open meadows of Dakota
The strong buffalo and Indian song
Brought a joyous sound to his ears.

A time when he could ride
For more than a week at a time
And feel the excitement and strain
OF the drive, behind those steers.

Now as the sun is setting on a life
That was lived in the beauty of the west
Just one more ride, out on the trail
Before death’s knock, on the door he hears.