A Cowboy's Lament
Sometimes when I’m riding long lonely trails
I think of my life and all it entails
Like sleeping with cattle stead of a nice pretty gal
And spending my Sundays in a dusty old corral
I sometimes stop and wunder what life could have been
Had I married sweet Caroline a way…way back when
She had hair more golden than sun dried hay
And her skin smelled of lilacs on a soft summer day
She said I could be a successful man if I tried
And we could live in Houston after the big knot was tied.
Have a house full of young-uns and a picket fence too
Take long walks in the hills with a dog we’d name Blue
I’m not sure why I bolted and never bothered to look back
Guess the fear of being saddled sent me to riding the tracks
I jumped off the train in Cheyenne with ten bucks to my name
Got drunk the first night and ended up broke all the same
Bummed around town for a while working odd jobs here and there
Slept in the back room at a stable and cleaned stalls for my care
I oft thought of Caroline back in Houston..her face I couldn’t furget
I kicked my butt nightly for creating this life of regret
But my need for freedom became my enemy in disguise
It drove me to roaming and brought about my demise
For try as I might I couldn’t break the spell of the road
The night sky above me and no cares to behold
Ten long years have passed and the cowboy’s life is now all I know
I sacrificed the words “I love you” for the words “giddy-up and whoa”
My horse Nell never answers nor does she ask for more than just feed
And here I sit alone with a sad heart empty and in need.
©Copyright Charlie Gragg May 14, 2010
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