FOLK COLLECTION 11: The Skaggs Foundation Cowboy Poetry Collection
29769 results found for "No Search Criteria Set"Book Title
Composer
Call #
Pages
Author
Poem Title
First Lines
Keywords
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
45
Peggy Godfrey
Out of Control
Humid southern air Fragrance-laden Vitamins and minerals for the soul. Unaccustomed to full heavy air I savor the flavors Rising like pavilions in a craft fair Each part of the whole Yet wholly apart.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
46
Peggy Godfrey
Refrigerator
Keeper of the cool Guardian of the frozen You stand sentry To all who enter By the front door.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
46
Peggy Godfrey
Trail Mix
My life is a trail mix Lots of trail Plenty of mix Salty, crunchy, chewy Good for ya By the handful.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
47
Peggy Godfrey
Lumpy Ground
Lumpy frost-heaved ground In my sub-irrigated pasture I remember my harsh judgment Of the rough, uneven grassland Unfit for haying equipment, truck Or even a hurried walk UNFIT! Until I really saw it.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
50
Peggy Godfrey
Fruitlessw Labor
His daddy did some farming But my neighbors left the land Now father's bones rest in the earth The son, an older man. Retirement near ten years ago Put time upon his hands Some money in his pockets So he made some farming plans.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
53
Peggy Godfrey
Falling In Love
Rains fall softly On dry hardened earth Earth refuses the rains Fearing A flood will carry her far away.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
55
Peggy Godfrey
Changing of the Guard
A haze of dust and vapor From two hundred heifers breathing Into frigid January night Two bundled shadows meet Like relay runners on a team A baton of words passed in their lantern light.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
56
Peggy Godfrey
Peggy Memorial Half-Day Wage
They called it contract labor And paid me by the hour Two years I had tood part-time work But then the deal went sour. My hours were cut in half last spring (The manager hired his friends) Then trickles of work grew scarcer Like drought that never ends.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
57
Peggy Godfrey
A Bumper Tale
Capt'n John lies mouldering His spotted hide is dull All that's left to show for life Are the long horns on his skull. He stood tall among the cattle But he lacked their good cow sense No matter where his body was His eye was over the fence.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
58
Peggy Godfrey
Clues for Breakfast
Wrestling clues from breakfast fare: Crispix with thawed strawberries Instant coffee and conversation. Columbo-style, I sleuth With an air of amused detachment.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
61
Peggy Godfrey
River of Life
Our lives make up a river From the day that we are born At death, we, like the water vapors, rise And the river keeps on flowing As births replenish flow While river spirits watch from in the skies.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
62
Peggy Godfrey
My Home Sweet Home, Moffat, CO
The letter stated bluntly That wildlife needs a boost Their organizationial goal is: take a stand. "We'll use your money wisely So wolves and salmon thrive And change the laws that govern public land.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
65
Peggy Godfrey
The Hawks
Birds of power Birds of prey Birds majestic Fly my way Full of wonder As I gaze Close to you've come To me amaze.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
66
Peggy Godfrey
Drag Rider's Lament
Ute Pass left no slack time For restful interludes 'Cuz I was riding drag Babysitting calves and dudes It's like pushing beebees uphill Things were not going well! The factor for disaster-- There's someone in the trail!
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
68
Peggy Godfrey
The New Fad
They see a vertical granite cliff And call it "overgrazed" Self-righteous in their rabid scorn Environmentally crazed.
Write Tough!
FC 11 G-35
75
Peggy Godfrey
Tough Times For A Rock
I am a chunk of granite Dynamited from my complacency Blasted and ripped From my mountain Chipped and cracked away. Crushed piece by piece.
Write 'Em Roughshod; Life 'N Such Like
FC 11 G-36
1
Peggy Godfrey
Crocus
I, shameless blossom Of late winter Pierce softened snow For in my roots Swells an earthy knowing Reverent recognition Of spring.
Write 'Em Roughshod; Life 'N Such Like
FC 11 G-36
3
Peggy Godfrey
Homees Need Sparkle
Unfamiliar but friendly blue eyes Hold my gaze as the voice inquires "Where do you get all that sparkle and energy?" I stumble over words Like a young girl being asked to dance for the first time.
Write 'Em Roughshod; Life 'N Such Like
FC 11 G-36
4
Peggy Godfrey
Calvin' and Lambin'
I'm out in the wind, mud and snow Checkin'a few hundred ladies The grim reaper lurks at the sidelines Hoping to get at my babies. I listen, I watch, feel in my gut-- Respond to the problem at hand With plenty of hope, calving chains, and rope Doctorin' by plan or demand.
Write 'Em Roughshod; Life 'N Such Like
FC 11 G-36
5
Peggy Godfrey
Mother Sounds
The calving lot is silent now No lazy chewing sound No restless, sleepless heifers Standing up and laying down. No panting, sighing, straining Only day sounds fill my ears No deep and chesty bovine hum To comfort newborn fears.
Write 'Em Roughshod; Life 'N Such Like
FC 11 G-36
6
Peggy Godfrey
Journney Upstream
Writing poetry makes me thirsty So I drink from the stream Of thoughts, ideas, feelings, observations. If my drink has a foul look or taste I move upstream. As I long for purer, sweeter water I venture nearer the headwaters.
Write 'Em Roughshod; Life 'N Such Like
FC 11 G-36
8
Peggy Godfrey
Disconnected
Incessant winds For eighteen miserable days. I've been calving First-calf heifers For sixty-five days-- Three p.m. till midnight.
Write 'Em Roughshod; Life 'N Such Like
FC 11 G-36
9
Peggy Godfrey
Dog-Gone Luck
Story.
Write 'Em Roughshod; Life 'N Such Like
FC 11 G-36
10
Peggy Godfrey
The Easter Urge
Ever get an inner tug That ya need to go somewhere Not fully knowing the reason Just a nudge in your gut to be there? Sometimes you're there for a blessing At times to lend a hand Most times the original reason to go Gets lost...but you understand.
Write 'Em Roughshod; Life 'N Such Like
FC 11 G-36
11
Peggy Godfrey
Hail and Farewell
Like the playhouse of small girls Your floor is strewn With fresh, green aspen leaves. Petticoats of evergreen needles Lie in circles on the ground In the serenity of morning.