FOLK COLLECTION 11: The Skaggs Foundation Cowboy Poetry Collection

Scribblings

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16

Norman Edward Rourke

Blue Birds are Nesting

Blue birds nesting, raising their young, Spring turns to summer, new life is begun, Colors flashing on grasses green, Snatching up insects and things unseen.

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17

Norman Edward Rourke

Coyote

Warily loping across the field, The coyote is alert to all around, Eyes see beyond, ears hear the silence, Nose captures smells from air and ground.

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N/A

Norman Edward Rourke

Reflections

In our private moments, we all have reflections: thoughts about our lives, who we are, relationships.

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18

Norman Edward Rourke

Somewhere Between Now and Then

Somewhere between now and then, I wander blindly seeking that which I know only when My thoughts are free.

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19

Norman Edward Rourke

Relief

I am less because I choose to be, No more to strive in light shed Upon a gift that no one sees.

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20

Norman Edward Rourke

Remains

What remains when we leave this place, To remind others we were here? A name chiseled on cold hard stone, For those with time to care?

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21

Norman Edward Rourke

Passing Days (For Stephanie & Shelia)

The years have passed so quickly, It seems but yesterday When you became my daughter, And I took you home to stay.

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22

Norman Edward Rourke

Pilgrim

I'm but a pilgrim on this highway, Wandering far and all alone. Just a pilgrim on this highway, Looking for a place called home.

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23

Norman Edward Rourke

Recall

A cry of fear came from his mouth, As soon as he saw the face, With frightened eyes that told it all, He knew the time and place

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24

Norman Edward Rourke

"I Do Not Believe"

"I do not believe," he said, As the water began to rise, His face resigned to death.

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25

Norman Edward Rourke

Judgement Day

When I alone must face the end, Will I be brave and say: "My best I gave and tried for more "Until this Judgement Day?"

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26

Norman Edward Rourke

Love Song

Sing me a song to mend my heart, Let me rise above the gloom, Fill my soul with a special love, That will not leave me soon.

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27

Norman Edward Rourke

Old Chair

This old chair feels good to me, As on my porch I sit and see, Nature in its regality.

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28

Norman Edward Rourke

Escape

I am two, but seem as one, And change is made to fit, The circumstances of society To be a part of it.

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29

Norman Edward Rourke

Empty

There is no place that beckons me, No longer do the muses call, The days pass one to another.

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30

Norman Edward Rourke

Dream Walker

Dream walker beguiled by night, As through the mist she glides, Like gossamer sails billowing Before the rising tide.

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31

Norman Edward Rourke

Chasing Orion

We chased Orion across the twinkling sky, Together among the heavenly lights We searched.

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32

Norman Edward Rourke

Album Pictures

Life passes unseen by most, A blur of time without a host, Seasons come and seasons go, Scorching heat and falling snow.

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Norman Edward Rourke

N/A

The page is blank. There are no words That flow from pen so readily. While thoughts run wild, Amid the void that covers heavily.

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34

Norman Edward Rourke

N/A

Where go the years so swiftly by, As seasons pass in a flash? How is it so the time seems short When we became one at last?

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35

Norman Edward Rourke

Faerie Queens Who Dance at Night

Faerie Queens who dance at night, Have but a moment before the light Reveals their magic ways, Leaving silent misty days.

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N/A

Norman Edward Rourke

Stories

Story poems can be short or long. There are no rules. Each has its own meaning.

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36

Norman Edward Rourke

The King's Return I

Within the walls of stone, Where all is damp and dark, Are men imprisoned for their lives, Who know not who they are.

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37

Norman Edward Rourke

The King's Return II

Out beyond the castle stone, Amid the misty night, A shadow turns to see Flames burning in the night.

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37

Norman Edward Rourke

The King's Return III

Years have gone, And still the tale is told: Of battles fought by common men For land and home to hold.