Holiday
Newsletter 
December
2006
Newsletter distributed five times annually. PLUS SPECIAL EDITIONS! For information or suggestions, contact Jo at (435)896-1856 or jolynne.kirkwood@sevier.k12.ut..us
AREA REPRESENTATIVES:
(North) Stan Tixier & Bob Ury (North Central) Bill Gubler & Val Carter (Central) CR Wood & Jerry Brooks (East) Al Clark
(South) Kenny Hall & Doug Keller
Presidents Message
I hope this newsletter finds our CPU family healthy and happy and enjoying the holidays.
This last week I (representing the CPU) was invited to a meeting in Salt Lake with many members of different organizations and met with the intent of establishing a group that wishes to preserve Utah's Heritage Arts in all areas such as handicrafts, language, food, art, dance, dress, music, etc. and to be able to share this with visitors as well as those who live in Utah. Not only were there representatives of performing organizations, but representatives from the Utah State Division of State History, the Utah Travel Council and Gardner Village were there. One of the objectives that were readily agreed on was the desire to share our heritage with the youth, so that these different aspects of our heritage will be continued. We have a great youth cowboy poetry program going down in the Richfield area thanks to Jo, and I have approached it several times up here in the Northern end with out too much success. If this group is able to come together as planned, it will help to open some doors.
They were very excited to see cowboy poetry represented and I was soon shown some information on an event they have planned for Gardner Village in June where they plan on having a youth cowboy poetry contest as part of their Frontier Fest. I was then approached by a gentleman who has a theater in Midvale and would be interested in having not only competitions for young blue grass players and performers, but was also interested in seeing some young poets get some attention as well.
Cowboy Poetry is Alive and Well in Utah!! The Cowboy Poets of Utah are great ambassadors where ever folks see you perform. A lot of good comments were made as folks mentions seeing you perform somewhere through out the state. Keep up the good work!
Happy Holidays,
Val Carter - Pres. CPU
An Old Farmer's Advice:
* Your fences need to be horse-high, pig-tight
and bull-strong.
* Keep skunks and bankers at a
distance.
* Life is simpler when you plow around the stump.
* A bumble bee is considerably faster than a
John Deere tractor.
* Words that soak into your ears are whispered...not yelled.
* Meanness don't jes' happen overnight.
* Forgive your enemies. It messes up their heads.
* Do not corner something that you know is meaner
than you.
* It don't take a very big person to carry a
grudge.
* You cannot unsay a cruel word.
* Every path has a few puddles.
* When you wallow with pigs, expect to get dirty.
* The best sermons are lived, not preached.
* Most of the stuff people worry about ain't
never gonna happen anyway.
* Don't judge folks by their relatives.
* Remember that silence is sometimes the best
answer.
* Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get
older and think back, you'll enjoy it a second time.
* Don't interfere with somethin' that ain't
botherin' you none.
* Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a
rain dance.
* If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop diggin'.
* Sometimes you get, and sometimes you get got.
* The biggest troublemaker you'll probably ever
have to deal with, watches you from
the mirror every mornin'.
* Always drink upstream from the herd.
* Lettin' the cat outta the bag is a whole lot
easier than puttin' it back in.
* Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply.
Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.
(Contributed by Brian Arnold…)
It is time to change from REDNECK humor to TRUE AMERICAN humor! Only I don't see it as Humor, but rather the correct way to LIVE YOUR LIFE ! If you feel the same, pass this on to your True American friends. Ya'll know who they are...
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: It never occurred to you to be offended by the phrase, "One Nation, Under God."
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: You've never protested about seeing the 10 Commandments posted in public places.
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: You still say "Christmas" instead of "Winter Festival."
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: You bow your head when someone prays.
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: You stand and place your hand over your heart when they play the National Anthem.
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: You treat Viet Nam vets with great respect, and always have.
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: You've never burned an American flag.
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: You know what you believe and you aren't afraid to say so, no matter who is listening.
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: You respect your elders and expect your kids to do the same.
You might be a TRUE AMERICAN if: You'd give your last dollar to a friend.
It is our country, it is our way of life, and I love it. God Bless the U S A
(Contributed by Doug Brewer)
Utah’s Miss Rodeo competed at Nationals, and did quite well! This is a copy of an email sent to her by Stan…
Cami - Congratulations! Second runner-up in the National competition is darn good. We're proud of you.
Remember, if you'd like to have a concert fund raiser to re-coup some of your expenses sometime after you have had time to recover, please let us know. The Cowboy Poets of Utah and the Utah Chapter of the Western Music Association would be happy to put on an outstanding program for you. It would probably have to be in some location near where you live because the Clearfield Auditorium is currently under restoration. Just let us know.
Again, Nice Going! - Stan Tixier.
This sad message was sent from Bill Chile, via Smoke Wade. Some of our members knew Roberta well.
Hello Smoke, Would you do me, all of us a favor and use your extensive email list and tell everyone on your all call that the Grand Aunt of The Cowboy Poets of Idaho Roberta Green passed away Dec. 5th. The funeral will be Monday the 11th at 11:o'clock in Challis Idaho at the Congregation Church. Thanks for doing this, Roberta was a truly wonderful Lady and a great poet, She loved Cowboy Poetry, others know more and can say more.
If you would do this please. She was a true friend to me, and I loved her.
Thanks, Bill
PLEASE READ!!! From the Webmaster
On our website we have a place for information on our members. Only a few have chosen to submit information to be placed here, and I have received a few inquires as to how many members we may have when it only shows 4.
To alleviate this problem I am going to list all the members with their name and city. Then if anyone would like to add to that anything such as a bio and pic or phone number we can gladly do that. Then if someone in the state is looking for a poet near them they would at least have your name and could look up your number. If there is anyone who would NOT want your name listed (witness protection program, etc.) please let me know.
Thanks,
cowboypoet@cowboypoetsofutah.org
WMA Wrap-up from Terri Taylor…
The Western Music Association held it 18th annual Festival and Awards Show in Albuquerque November 16th-19th and CPU and WMA/Utah Chapter were very well represented and active. We had a total of 17 people in attendance who either performed, ran the mercantile, presented awards and received awards. Andy and Jim Nelson from COW Radio took home the award for DJ of the Year; Andy also took home the award for Male Poet of the Year presented by Sam DeLeeuw and STAMPEDE! received the Crescendo Award in a tie with Eli Barsi.
Needless to say, the WMA is VERY aware of the presence and importance of both CPU and WMA/Utah Chapter. Thanks to all that were there for your support.
COWBOYPOETRY.COM has announced the latest winner of the prestigious Lariat Laureate Award, and this time around it’s our very own
Sam DeLeeuw
Brenda "Sam" DeLeeuw was born in Blackfoot, Idaho, just off the Fort Hall Reservation. She had her first horse when she was four and spent hours riding the Reservation with her Indian friends and even more hours on the tributaries of the Snake River.
She continued to ride and rodeo during her high school years and then attended Snow College in Ephraim, Utah, on the rodeo team. While at college she took as many livestock classes as she could, often the only girl in Feeds and Feeding, Livestock Management and Selection, and so on.
Now single, Sam was married for almost twenty years to a man who raised cattle and sheep. She can run a squeeze chute, inoculate cows in the heat of the day and spend cold nights checking first time calving heifers by headlight. She can keep a calf warm on the floor of her truck or the floor of her kitchen, and keep the scour medicine in her fridge separate from the dressing she made for last night's supper. She can also keep a sense of humor and make a good story out of any of the happenings experienced with the stock.
Sam is the past president of the Cowboy Poets of Utah, and is now serving on its Board of Directors. She is a member of the Cowboy Poets of Idaho, Cowboy Poets of Wind River, the Utah Chapter of the Western Music Association (WMA) and was one of five finalists for the WMA Female Poet for 2006. Sam won three of four events in the Western Legends Poetry Rodeo in Kanab, Utah, held in August of 2006 and was named the 2006 Silver Buckle Category winner.
This is Sam DeLeeuw's winning poem:
When cold grey clouds take flight
Chased off by azure blue,
And rigid earth gives way
To desert life anew...
When cactus blossom hues
Adorn the desert sand,
When wild grass turns green
Across a barren land...
When heifers, bawling low,
Announce new life at dawn,
When crusted ice and snow
Shine bright and then are gone...
When mares with early foals,
Stand guard against the wind,
And show their growing ire,
Heads high, with ears laid pinned...
When hawks and eagles fly
Then hover overhead,
And guard their feathered nests
In cliffs of desert red...
When howling chants arise
From wolf pups in the night,
When antelope downwind
Are spooked and bolt in flight...
Warmth comes to the prairie ...
When sun rays stretch their arms,
Magic fills the senses....
When Springtime shares her charms!
© 2006, Brenda "Sam" DeLeeuw
Sam told CP.C about her inspiration for this poem: Spring is magical, especially when you are riding out where new life is appearing everywhere. It may come in cactus blossoms, new grass, melting snow off lichen laden rock or new foals and calves. You can't help but "feel" spring in those first few weeks of new life on the flat or desert. The mountains still carry its crown of frozen ice, but the valleys begin a rebirth that fills your senses with anticipation and "magic."
Other CPU members who have won the Lariat Laureate Award in previous years include Sam Jackson, Paul Kern, Rod Miller and Jo Lynne Kirkwood.
(Thanks to Margo Metegrano and CowboyPoetry.com for this information, and for all the good work she does on behalf of cowboy poetry and Cowboy Poets of Utah. If there is still ANYONE out there who hasn’t visited her website, do so TODAY. Cowboypoetry.com)
Heber City’s Cowboy Poetry Gathering and Buckaroo Fair
CPU was well represented at the Heber City Gathering this year, and we’re proud of our members who participated. The official CPU Show took place on Friday, and Kenny Hall played cowboy music to introduce the Utah sessions. At four PM, Jerry Brooks, CR Woods, Fred Engle and Jeff Coates took the stage, and proved conclusively that Utah boasts as fine Cowboy Poets as can be found anywhere in the west. The second session featured Utah youth poets Braden, Caib and Aubree Brian, Curtis Probert, Kate Murdock and Swasey Bliss. As usual, the kids stole the show and we were delighted to have it happen. The future of cowboy poetry is secure in Utah, so long as we have talented youngsters like these to take the reins. The third session featured Paul Bliss, Michael Robinson, Phil Kennington, and Jo Lynne Kirkwood, and what had started out as a great afternoon of poetry just kept getting better. Kenny Hall took the stage one more time to wrap things up, and the set closed at six-forty-five with a room filled with folks eager to hear more.
Brian Arnold, Jay Erickson, Val Carter and Casey Woods also performed, and we saw Don Kennington, Jeff Carson, and STAMPEDE! If you haven’t made it to Heber City during the gathering, plan now for 2007. It’s a heck of a show.
Just in time for Christmas, this poem from Doug Brewer…
To Know Him
When I get thinkin’ serious, which sadly, ain’t that much,
When the campfire’s glowin’ low and stars are out and such,
I ponder where I’m headed, beyond this trail on Earth.
Face up to my becomin’ and size up what I’m worth.
I think about the Savior and why He put us here.
To learn to try to be like Him while on this Earthen sphere.
And the question often comes to mind, just what is He like?
And I’ve decided... He’s like Henry, there, helpin’ Adam fix his bike.
And He’d be like Mabel Jones, whose stove’s a burnin’ hot,
Bakin’ bread to give away, ‘thwat little money that she’s got.
He’d be like Stubby Pringle, that night he changed his route
And traded dancin’ to make Christmas for a family down and out.
He’d be like one-armed Joe, the hand Ned hired last May.
Bent to do the work of two, to clinch he earns his pay.
Like the Lord would do, I guess, to sort o’ compensate.
And He’d be like Ned hisself, for givin’ Joe a break.
And since He is our older brother, warms m’ heart to know
He’d be like my big brother, Stan, a watchin’ o’er me so.
And Ma and Pa were ‘bout as Christ-like as any souls I’ve met.
There’d be a lot of them—a lot—in Him, I bet.
I try to see how He might be, in all the folks I meet.
Searchin’ in for some of Him’s a game that’s kind o’sweet.
I’ve never searched a soul, and felt I’ve not been taught.
Tho’ I confess—a few seem best at teachin’ how He’s not.
‘Spec we’re all on someone’s list who’s watchin’ what we do.
Likely verses waitin’, tagged for me and you.
With each His picture clears a little, and I see more how to be,
Line on line, jot and tittle, like a tapestry—
The picture’s wove together with threads of folks I’ve met.
Bet you’ve helped me know him better. And there’s still weavin’s yet...
Plus I’ve found I’ve neared a notch, for when it’s my time to acquaint Him,
Cause I’m seein’ He ain’t half so serious, as the preachers tend to paint Him.
January ELKO (January 27th – February 3rd)
February Moab Gathering – Presidents Day Weekend (CPU Meeting on Saturday morning – 8AM)
March Cedar City Cowboy Gathering (Curly Syndergaard) – St. Patrick’s Day Weekend
April National Cowboy Poetry Month – CPU Dinner/Poetry Week Event
April Gathering at the Triple C in Panguitch (Kenny Hall)
June Elsinore Days/Sevier Valley Festival (CR WOOD)
June Lehi Round-up (Val Carter)
July CPU Summer Party (National Day of the Cowboy: July 28th)
ROD MILLER has another poem in print, this time in RANGE Magazine. Staff of Life is a beautiful tribute to women, as well as a fine example of poetry.
Please take time to visit the excellent selection of Christmas poems being posted daily on Cowboypoetry.com. The list is growing longer as Christmas approaches, but so far CPU members with Christmas poems on the site include Sam Jackson, Paul Kern and Rod Miller. I can’t think of a better place or way for us to connect with the season that through these poems written by friends and fellow poets.
And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, everyone to his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city called Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem: (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her first born son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them at the inn.
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone about them; and they were sore afraid. And the angel said to them,
Fear not: for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born today in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you: Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men.
And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another,
Let us go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.
And they came with haste, and found, Mary, Joseph and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
St. Luke 2:1-20.
The politically correct Christmas
On the 12th day of the Eurocentrically imposed midwinter festival, my Significant Other in a consenting adult, monogamous relationship gave to me:
TWELVE males reclaiming their inner warrior through ritual drumming,
ELEVEN pipers piping (plus the 18-member pit orchestra made up of members in good standing of the Musicians Equity Union as called for in their union contract even though they will not be asked to play a note),
TEN melanin deprived testosterone-poisoned scions of the patriarchal ruling class system leaping,
NINE persons engaged in rhythmic self-expression,
EIGHT economically disadvantaged female persons stealing milk-products from enslaved Bovine-Americans,
SEVEN endangered swans swimming on federally protected wetlands,
SIX enslaved Fowl-Americans producing stolen non-human animal products,
FIVE golden symbols of culturally sanctioned enforced domestic incarceration,
(NOTE: after members of the Animal Liberation Front threatened to throw red paint at my computer, the calling birds, French hens and partridge have been reintroduced to their native habitat. To avoid further Animal-American enslavement, the remaining gift package has been revised.)
FOUR hours of recorded whale songs
THREE deconstructionist poets
TWO Sierra Club calendars printed on recycled processed tree carcasses and...
ONE Spotted Owl activist chained to an old-growth pear tree.
Merry Christmas Happy Chanukah. Good Kwanzaa. Blessed Yule. Happy Holidays! (unless otherwise prohibited by law)*
*Unless, of course, you are suffering from Seasonally Affected Disorder (SAD). If this be the case, please substitute this gratuitous call for celebration with suggestion that you have a thoroughly adequate day.
The Shopping Criminal
It was Christmas and the judge was in a merry mood as he asked the prisoner,"What are you charged with?"
"Doing my Christmas shopping early", replied the defendant.
"That's no offense", said the judge. "How early were you doing this shopping?"
"Before the store opened."
Q: What do elves learn in school?
A: The Elf-abet!
Q: What's the most popular wine at Christmas?
A: "I don't like sprouts" !
Q: If athletes get athletes foot, what do astronauts get?
A: Missletoe!
Q: What do you get when you cross a snowman with a vampire?
A: Frostbite.
Q: Why does Santa have 3 gardens?
A: So he can ho-ho-ho.
Q: Where do polar bears vote?
A: The North Poll.
Q: Why do birds fly south for the winter ?
A: Because it's to far to walk.
Q: How does Al Gore's household keep Christmas politically correct?
A: On Christmas morning, they give the presents TO the tree.
Q: What do you call a cat on the beach at Christmas time?
A: Sandy Claus!
Q: What nationality is Santa Claus?
A: North Polish.
Q: What do you call a bunch of grandmasters of chess bragging about their games in a hotel lobby?
A: Chess nuts boasting in an open foyer!
Q: What do you get if you deep fry Santa Claus?
A: Crisp Cringle.
Q: What did the ghosts say to Santa Claus?
A: We'll have a boo Christmas without you.
Q: What did Santa shout to his toys on Christmas Eve?
A: Okay everyone, sack time!!
Q: What do snowmen eat for breakfast?
A: Snowflakes.
Q: If Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus had a child, what would he be called?
A: A subordinate claus.
Q: What goes Ho, Ho, Swoosh, Ho, Ho, Swoosh?
A: Santa caught in a revolving door!
Q: What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus?
A: Claustrophobic.
Q: Why is Christmas just like a day at the office?
A: You do all the work and the fat guy with the suit gets all the credit.