Cowboy's Comfort

The sun’s sinkin’ low,
way off in the West
and this cowboy’s a-thinkin’
it’s time for a rest
‘cause he’s been in the saddle
since just after dawn
makin’ sure all the doggies
stay where they belong.
So he steps off his pony
and takes off the saddle.
Then hobbles that cayuse
so it won’t skidaddle
when those coyotes start howling
their mournful old cry
at the moon, as it rides
through the dusty old sky.
His dinner is simple,
sowbelly and beans.
Then he kicks off his boots
and loosens his jeans
as he pours him some coffee
that’s boiled up just right
and sits there a listenin’
to the sounds of the night.
It’s a lonely old life,
that’s a fact, to be sure.
But, bein’ alone
has a certain alure
cause it gives you some time
at the end of the day
to listen to all that the Lord has to say.
See, a cowboy alone,
sitting there by the fire
doesn’t need to hear preachin’
or songs from a choir
to know there’s a God.
Cause God’s there in the breeze,
and the sagebrush and cactus
and all that he sees.
God’s footprints, he’ll tell you,
are plain as the day.
if you don’t let that other stuff
get in the way,
like worry and frettin’
how this or why that,
or complainin’ how unfair
things are where you’re at.
So, he pours out his coffee
and hunkers on down
ah-hearin God whisper
in each little sound,
“you can rest easy pardner
and I’ll tell you why,
cause I’m always right with ya,
and that ain’t no lie.”

Jeff Hildebrandt copyright 1999