Me ‘n Pa wuz headin’ out tuh mend sum busted fence
We lit out about daylight, like we had any sense
A thousand acres of land we had, half forest, half grass
Cattle wuz gettin’ out too much, we had tuh do it fast
Sun wuz barely up, ‘n already ‘bout ninety five
Gonna be a scorcher, let’s see if’n we survive
We thowed tools ‘n gear in a coupla five gallon pails
Wire, hammers, water, axe, ‘n rounded fencin’ nails
Worked the front section first, not much there tuh fix
From there on out, we used all our fencin’ tricks
Tightened loose strands with limbs cut from trees
Fightin’ horse flies as big as bumble bees
Scotchin’ up posts that wuz rotted at the base
Made do with what we had till new ones could be placed
Limbs down in places, took wire plumb tuh the ground
Helluva wonder we had any cattle left tuh be found
Workin’ in timber is hotter’n hell at best
No breeze a’tall ‘n no time fer any rest
Once’t in a while we had tuh give way tuh snakes
Let em move on by their selves for all our sakes
Just after noon, we wuz half way ‘round the place
Pa aloud as how he’d had all he could face
We headed fer home dang near too tired tuh walk
I knowed old Pa wuz tired, he didn’t even talk
We wuz maybe half way there when we rested on a log
Then we heard the sounds of a buncha danged wild hogs
A’lookin fer a place tuh go, we wound up climbin’ trees
A hog kin bite a man’s laig off as purty as ya please
Set there waitin’ fer ‘em tuh pass, two hours stretched tuh four
When they wandered outa sight, we waited a little more
We clumb down, grabbed tools ‘n gear, ‘n lit a shuck fer home
With guns on hips, we finished that fence, out where the wild hogs roam
Author notes
This is a true story from my days growing up on a ranch.
A contest entry
- The Real West by Haygood.
1750 points, ended November 13, 11 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Any suggestions and comments are welcome
Comments
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A day in the life here...
and the work was never ending. I think the lingo made this such a fun poem to read. It is what I am looking for. I enjoyed reading it.
Thank you for the entry.
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Well done. You put me in mind of my aunt and uncle that lived way back in the country for most of their lives. I really got a kick outta thisun. Pen on fellow country boy (even if'n I am a girl
)
Sharon
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Been checking out your work, and I like it! First off I thought you were an Aussie - please take this as a compliment! - and this poem puts me in mind of our Aussie rhymes. Very good! You're a fav of mine
from now on. Best wishes for the contest!
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Riiiiiiiiide 'em, Cowboy. 
Good luck in the contest, my Friend. You're a hoot and a half, ya know. 
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