Author: Jerry Brotherton

I am The Backyard Poet and I warn you that, not only will I ramble on about nothing but, I have been known to stand upon my soapbox and rant about things I care nothing about just to hear the sound of my own voice. I will try to force my opinion upon anyone willing to pay the slightest attention.

~ A Wannabe Cowboy…

On By Jerry BrothertonIn cowboy, Poetry3 Comments

Well I’ve lived in this Montana country
guess it’s been pert near fourteen years
I call myself a cowboy though I ain’t
roped a horse or branded no steers

Ain’t broke me no fiery eyed wild stallion
pushed cattle across open land
never fended off a mountain lion
or killed a grizz with my bare hands

I ain’t wrangled some ornery rustlers
with my rifle and colt six gun
or spent winter alone in a line shack
or been in a bar fight just for fun

But I got me a hat, some chaps and spurs
went and watched me a rodeo
I learned that to be a real life cowboy
is more than putting on a show

Don’t need to wear a Montana slope hat
to live the good old cowboy way
It’s more about how you respect the land
and always mean just what you say

You believe in traditions and honor
love, nature, honesty and song
A person who follows his commitments
though he may have to ride alone

If you want to be a cowboy my friend
then it’s having the fortitude
to stick to convictions and do what’s right
That is the cowboy’s attitude

Jerry Brotherton
Prairie Time – a coolection of poems and prose
copywright 2020

~ Wishin’ I Was a Real Cowboy…

On By Jerry BrothertonIn cowboy, Poetry2 Comments

I am not quite a genuine cowboy
but I know that somewhere deep down inside
If I had only been born way back when
I could surely punch cows, rope, brand and ride

I always wanted to be a cowhand
Oh what a glorious life that would be
riding along with the herd cross the land
living a life that was simple and free

I’d rise before the sun started to shine
ride all day under the sweltering heat
fifteen hours a day for nearly no pay
just a biscuit and a few beans to eat

I could help a thousand head to birth calves
with cold wind a blowin’ rain down my back
or ride along a thousand miles of fence
spend a winter in a leaky line shack

When on a drive and “breakin’ day” gets called
though I was froze stiff, wet, muddy and damp
I’d roll out of bed to stretch these old bones
they would hear the popping clear cross the camp

I s’pose that now I think hard about it
maybe cowboyin’ just ain’t quite right for me
Perhaps I’ll stay here in my writer’s room
Riding the range through cowboy poetry

‘Prairie Time’- a collection of poems and prose from a wannabee cowboy

copyright 2020

“He went out, not knowing where he was going.” Hebrews 11:8

On By Jerry BrothertonIn flash, Poetry, Short Stories1 Comment

If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from my many years on earth, it is that no one is really sure what awaits us around the bend. But that doesn’t mean we have to stop walking along the path. I see and read about all the world’s problems every day. Most of us are so worried about the million little ‘what-if’s that it has us so full of fear we can’t enjoy the things that are. Worrying about what the future will give us though, is a waste of time and a disrespect for the life God has given us. Because no matter what obstacles might be hiding around the corner, all the roads in life are going to lead each of us to the same gate.

Each morning we wake up, we get another chance to face the unknown. I know, that with the challenges of the past year littered across the path, it makes us a little leery of what lies ahead. But now, more than any time I can recall, it is important that we ‘go out’ though we don’t know where the path will lead us or what hurdles will face us. We must get up, put on our shoes, and go out to meet the day and not worry about where we’re going… just enjoy the adventure.

Prairie Time

On By Jerry BrothertonIn cowboy, Poetry8 Comments

Dedication

The snow upon the mountains

and the wind across the plains

These are the sparks that ignite

my inspiration’s flame

That in nothing I shall be ashamed…Philippians 1:20

On By Jerry BrothertonIn flash, Poetry, Short Stories10 Comments

I keep seeing all these posts that talk about us needing to act like humans again. I have to ask, when it was that we stopped acting like humans. Throughout our history, we have always been oppressors of the weak, war mongers, propagandist, liars, cheaters, and thieves. Even God, who created us in his own image, covered the Earth with water in an attempt to rid the world of us. So I say to you, let’s attempt to not be human at all… but to be something better. To be what God had intended for us all along. To live our lives in harmony and at the end of our time we can look back and not be ashamed of our actions.