Cowboy Poets of Utah
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The following link will lead you to a 24 minute video highlighting the 150th birthday celebration of St. George reenacting the pioneer trek to settle the area.  You will see the Paul Bliss family participate and may also recognize faces of others who are involved in Utah's cowboy poetry.

http://voddov.com/video/view/St-George-city-150th-Birthday-Pioneer-trek-Documentary-2012-01-17



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RIP Don 1-1-2015

http://www.standard.net/Obituaries/2015/01/03/Donald-Kennington.html

The Last Nail

(Don Kennington)

There's pain a throbbing in my back.
Sometimes my knees are stiff and sore.
Guess I'd better see the doctor
Don't get around good any more.

But, I know just what he's going to say,
"You've got to quit that shoeing Don.
I know it's something you enjoy
But you've been doing it too long.

But he just doesn't understand
That it's the center of my life.
I love it more than anything
Except the kids and my dear wife.

'Cause when I'm under that ol' hoss,
I'm just as good as any one.
Those folks think that I'm important
We laugh and joke a-having fun.

I've been out there shoeing horses
And making friends o'er thirty years.
And when Doc says, I ought to quit
I start a fighting back the tears.

'Cause I love a shoeing horses.
Yeah, I suppose that sounds kind of dumb
But then I feel good inside
That's when I really am someone.

My shoeing friends don't laugh at me
And they don't call me stupid names.
They treat me like I'm one of them.
They act like we're all just the same.

And when I see them somewhere else
They usually honk and wave at me.
And so I grin and wave them back
Then I feel good inside you see?

We're supposed to tend God's creatures.
But some folks get a little rough.
That's when some of God's creatures
Live a life that's pretty tough.

Like when you walk up to a pony
And he's a-shaking like a leaf.
You whisper and you scratch him,
Ain't hard to tell he's had some grief.

And you keep scratching and a-whispering
'Cause you're trying to be a friend
And that pony starts to relax
And he starts to comprehend.

Finally that pony licks his lips
And you can feel him settle down.
Then you won't have any trouble
Working his feet up off the ground.

And when that pony walks away
His legs are swinging straight and true.
And it really is amazing
At what a little love can do.

Oh, it hasn't been all roses,
But for the most part it's been fun.
I've met a lot of real, nice folks
And come to love near everyone.

Yeah, I've been kicked and knocked around
By horses been abused a lot.
That's when you've gotta keep yer cool,
Use all the patience that you've got.

So let me drive just one more nail
And snug that shoe down good and tight.
My back is hurtin some
But I've just got to do it right.

"There now. That's a little better.
That pony's ready for the trail.
But I won't be coming back
'Cause I've just driven my last nail."








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Rod Miller adds articles to his blog spot frequently. He has recently posted a tribute to Dusty Richards, our departed friend. Keep up with Rod and include his blog to your favorites. http://writerrodmiller.blogspot.com

















Stan Tixier

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It is with great sorrow we note the recent passing our of dear friend and mentor, Stan Tixier.  














EVENING AT THE RANCH

I Watch
The sun set on the rugged West mountains
Thin grey clouds turn red and gold
Dark shadows fall across rocky ledges
A beautiful sight that one can behold

I Feel
A lazy cool evening breeze
Whistling softly in the old elm trees.

I Hear
Nesting birds chatter suddenly fades away
But will return again at the break of day

I Smell
The aroma of the new mown hay
Created by the summer's hot humid day

I Hear
Humming sounds the tractor makes
The clattering of the old hay rake
Turning, rolling the hay at twilight
Stopping suddenly at the darkness of night

I Feel
A warm breeze moving across the open plain
Making rustling sounds in the golden ripe grain

I See
Trees swaying in the gentle breeze
Owls hooting in the moonlit trees

I Hear
Bawling calves having strayed out of the mother's sight
A cow's bellowing call penetrates the stillness of the night

I Hear
Frogs croaking and splashing in the rocky bog
A far way bark of a lonely dog

I Hear
Crickets chirping their mating call
A rotted branch break off and fall

As the mysteries of nature begin to unfold
Only at the ranch can these things be told.

Terrill Staples

(Terrill says: Things I have observed while at the ranch.)








Song of the Canyon Wren
Copyright Rob Rowley

As I go through my life in this work-a-day world
There's a sound that I'm longing to hear
It opens my mind to my memories of
All the beautiful places that I hold so dear
My heart and my soul are made up of the things
That abound in the places I mean
Ponderosa and slickrock and streams of bright water
That bring to the desert the cool shades of green

Just what is this sound that can take me away
To this ideal grotto or glen
That can bring me to tears when I think of the years
It may be 'till I get back and hear it again
If you've heard it, you'll know. If you haven't, you can't
But give ear, and I'll tell you my friend
The wonderous sound that can do all of this
Is the song of the Canyon Wren

(It's the tiny, petite...that bird-song so sweet...it's the song of the Canyon Wren)

The joy in the voice of this non-descript bird
Is the joy that I feel in my heart
When  I'm wading along in my boots and my pack
In the sweet, cool air and the best of God's art
This is Heaven...Utopia...Shangri-La too.
(Or if not, it's a pretty good start)
And this little brown bird with the twittering throat
Is in charge...He's the King of the musical part

In this region of canyons, of slots and defiles
And the streams and the floods that bring life
There exists such a pallette of colorful sounds
That many won't know in the length of their lives
Like the roar of the flash-flood after a downpour
The howls from the coyote's den
But the one little sound that can put them to shame
Is the song of the Canyon Wren

(It's the little, the pretty...not heard in the city...it's the song of the Canyon Wren)

This started out as a poem, but because of the name I gave it, I couldn't stand myself until I actually put it to music.






 
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