People who like this sort of thing (may) find that this is the sort of thing they like.
Abraham Lincoln (as literary critic)
The author became acquainted with the work of cowboy poets after reading an article in The Independent in 1995: ‘Poets and Cowboys’ is the response. The next three poems were about significant things happening in California, then leading to the central block based on the Castroville Artichoke Festival. The last section continues as a record of interesting events mostly in California, but some in New England.
The Cowboy is the modern equivalent of the wandering minstrel, and cowboy poetry festivals/competitions have become cherished features of life in the American West. The driving rhythm of the horse and the constant sense of journeying lends itself to the longer narrative poetic forms, but may also account for the fact that these poets have no regard for so-
Listen to the cowboy poet;
what is his dream?
His dream is
that, one day,
his words will escape
and thunder away
and he shall be seen
bold on the skyline
heading them off.
But listen to the cowboy poet.
What does he know?
He knows this,
he knows the wide plains
where the meter and rhyme
is the beat of the hooves,
and he knows the corral
where all must be reigned in.
Dust rises and swirls
as he turns
and without
breaking his rhythm,
dismounts.
In the sweep of his stop
is his loss of momentum,
his point of unease.
So what is his fear?
His fear is
(betraying his manly prowess)
that his heart may hold feelings
his word’s can’t express.
The showdown’s approaching,
so what do you see?
He takes his position and starts to expound.
If that drawl is a clue to the speed of his thought,
that swagger, bravado,
that raw laid-
will not help him now;
this man is a loser,
he hasn’t a chance!
Yet his face is so open
It’s hard to take in.
Is he tough or benign?
Does he smile?
Does he grin?
But louche is the word;
he’s exciting the crowd.
Though they don’t understand him
they root for their man.
You stand side by side,
each prepared for the test,
but he’s quick on the draw,
right enough and before
you can say
‘’Howdy do!’
he has winged you
and drives home his point
with four deadly lines
in a fine rhyming cadence
and
in one languid gesture,
says,
‘Well I’ll be darned!
Those fine city ways
were unable to save you.’
The mystery spot in Santa Cruz (California) does not disappoint. Two people of identical height stand two metres apart on a demonstrably level board. Both individuals and the onlookers see the one at the southern end as at least six inches taller than the one at the northern end. This and many other illusions at the site are said to be due to a strong gravitational anomaly. It seems more probable that some optical artefact is distorting the perception of verticality, but there is no photographic evidence for any such feature.
In places such as this,
the laws
of physics and of sense
do not apply,
don’t ask me why.
We have heard sage and prophet,
doctor and saint,
although with rule and line,
about it and about
make argument
but then came out
less wise
than in they went.
Something has distorted gravity
and bent
perception.
There
are other places where the such forces act,
and, we are confident that excavation
would disclose
a piece of rock so weird,
its properties could never be explained
by science. On
the other hand,
about that stellar Jay you saw when you arrived;
When you are gone from here
you’ll find
the mind’s eye
cannot recreate
that iridescent blue.
Hearst Castle is one of the major tourist attractions on the west coast of California. William Randolf Hearst’s hospitality was legendary. The guest were not told how long they were expected to stay, but took the hint from the seating arrangements at the magnificent dining table. As each in turn found themselves seated uncomfortably close to the fire, they understood that it was time to leave.
Here the Pacific plate
slides under continental crust,
and melts
to lubricate the flow of land, north along the coast,
and here
William Randolf Hearst
built his castle.
This explains how land becomes,
not a barren waste on the sea floor,
but makes the continents,
our permanent inheritance.
He accumulated art and established an oasis
of continental debris on the hilltop.
In its hey-
and down along the table,
until, seated near the fire, realised
that it was time to go.
He too, eventually, found that it was time to leave.
The castle, floating on its quake-
sails past on billowing hills and could last forever,
if we were to reconstruct his will
in perpetuity,
this Wonder of the World
deriving (as it does)
from things that he could buy, or not,
the Sphinx,
the Pillars of Stonehenge, or Carnac,
Noah’s Ark,
the Alexandrian Lighthouse,
Colossus of Rhodes restored from the sea bed,
and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
From Santa Fe with Laughing Eyes
People said,
the one place you must see,
while you are here,
is Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Next day
in the restaurant
we sat next to this pair.
They said Good day!
We said,
where are you from?
and they replied,
New Mexico, from Santa Fe.
We said
that is the place we have been told to see,
they said,
indeed,
it's good
not least it lies
at seven thousand feet into the sky.
Unique enough,
we thought,
and later both agreed,
that he had laughing eyes
and also, should we go there,
never say, We know nobody here
but once we met a man
with laughing eyes
I wonder do you know him?
Yes
he lives across the street
but do not think that he
will not know grief.
When it comes
his sorrow will be
poignant, just because of this,
though lighter for the rest of us to bear.
Cultivation of the globe artichoke, Cynara cardunculus was taken to America by French settlers in Louisiana, but arrived in California with Spanish migrants. This mixed origin is clearly shown in the name of the town Castroville, held to be the capital of American artichoke production. It also claims to host the World’s second largest artichoke festival. One commentary, avoiding invidious comparison, has the following to say about it:-
First, you watch the parade, an eclectic mix of local high school marching bands, medieval enthusiasts, and Aztec dancers gracing tiny Castroville's main drag. Wandering into the Artichoke Festival, you'll find classic cars, ferret legalization advocates etc.. You might enter an artichoke eating contest or observe animal sculptures made entirely of artichokes. But the food was what brought you here, whether it's an artichoke burrito or the more unusual artichoke cupcake.
Each year they ’crown’ an Artichoke Queen, the very first being Norma Jeane Mortenson (Baker), later to be known as Marylin Monroe.
There are records of two other artichoke festivals, one in Sicily at Cerda near Palermo and one in Benicarlo on the coast between Barcelona and Valencia, but neither claims to be the number one.
Glossary
Globe Artichoke: a perennial thistle, originating around the Mediterranean. The edible portion of the flower buds consists primarily of the fleshy lower portions of the involucral bracts and the base, known as the heart.
Bract: a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, Bracts are often different from foliage leaves, for example being smaller, larger, or of a different colour or texture. Bracts that appear in a whorl subtending an inflorescence are collectively called an involucre.
El Chicano is a Latin R&B/brown-
Burrito: a flour tortilla wrapped or folded around a filling such as Mexican rice, beans, lettuce, salsa, meat, avocado, cheese, and sour cream lightly grilled or steamed. From the Spanish ‘burrito’, a little donkey, possibly derives from the appearance of a rolled up wheat tortilla, because it resembles either a donkey’s ear or else the bedrolls and packs that donkeys carried.
Enchilada: the past participle (f) of Spanish enchilar, "to add chili pepper to," literally to "season (or decorate) with chili.
Hombredad: manliness
Demasiado: too, too much
Injerto, Corrupción: Words corresponding to the English ‘graft‘.
Fair Castroville,
city of the plain,
victim of the uninvited one
whose gift became the hedge of thistles
that enclose
and bind you in,
where now the guests return
to wake,
by sword or kiss,
their youthful dream.
We, the Pilgrims at the Wicket Gate,
are not deterred by prohibitions. No!
No weapons, loitering in groups
pets cans and bottles
ice chests horseplay bikes and skates and scooters. Violators
will be rapidly escorted out, their entrance fee
retained.
On the plus side
field tours,
buses,
ABC of artichoke cuisine.
Showcase festival
Special memories (of artichokes)
country hoe down,
Bubble the Clown,
comedian and juggling jokes.
The Main Event,
today and yesterday, tomorrow.
morning and afternoon.
Artichokes past,
present and to come. Do not miss
dancing
Charleston, Tap,
Belly, Hip Hop
Square and line dance
Salsa Rueda,
and
just to show who
does the work here,
at the ending,
El Chicano.
Catherine de Medici (1519-
In the country of the artichoke
burgers and fries
were, as far as we could see,
the uncrowned King.
All those folk
who made their way around
the straw bale maze,
ignoring cries of
“Lovely artichokes,
fried, baked, or grilled,”
perhaps, starting early,
had their fill before we came.
Or,
breaking their fast,
sucking the soft-
experienced the same sensation
that shucking oysters by the dozen gives.
and
finding themselves overcome by lust,
feared that any passer by
would see
and point it out,
and so contrived to seek
a lesser sin.
Yes, it was the food that called them.
Three short piping notes so sweet,
entreating.
A, the host and guest
speaks for itself.
B, Burritos, little donkey rolls.
No donkeys here;
considering their taste for thistles,
they might find these spineless dishes
too insipid.
C, cynara cupcakes, bakers choice,
but where’s the queue?
Lipservice yes,
but not hombredad!
D, deep fried in batter
E, for enchilada from the Spanish enchilar,
a useful verb we do not have that means ‘to
coat in chili’ and enables you to shout out
to the waiter,
Demasiado enchilado!
Quickly, bring a glass of water!
F for fried again and
G for grilled.
At this point we have had enough,
choked to the gills
we need a break.
We’ll go to find an eating contest.
H for heavy weights who honed their skills;
the grab and push,
how much they put away,
and how long
hold it down.
Bring on the dancing girls;
four lively ladies of that certain age,
(which pays in spades with flavour)
decked in scarlet-
Had we chanced upon the Moulin Rouge,
The Can Can starts.
Eyes strain to see the involucral bracts,
the petal-
Tongues yearn to sense
the succulent forbidden leaves.
The pack is closing in.
Burnt-
cowboys down to earth.
Oh Grandpa,
what big teeth you’ve got!
Are they your own?
But no!
The ladies grin,
they’ve seen it all before.
The teeth are drawn,
the rams
have been dehorned;
an audience of sheep
in wolves’ clothing.
(A fractal outline)
This island form confirms our darkest dreams.
An outline that contains
itself within itself
and on such things
the gods have built a Universe.
Seeing this
and filled with mounting hubris,
gangs of rival architects conspire
to put together
archetypal forms, and starting with
a range off artichoke designs for fighting cocks
would
if allowed in, drag
the whole profession downward
into disrepute.
The last event!
We’ve come to this
the winning bid for poster artwork.
Don’t expect fair competition!
Local artists,
highly practised,
each awaiting one decision,
modestly refrain from boasting,
it won’t be me,
you must be joking.
Only the very best can hope
to win the supreme accolade,
First Past the Post.
A coveted award awaits success,
believe me this
that no backhanders
will be passed.
Hard graft,
injerto not corrupción
will mark the one
who can persuade the judge
he has the edge
in mastery
of vegetable arts
including
contemplative
artichoke work.
An artichoke-
Before you go,
the coup de grace,
liqueur of artichoke,
distilled cynara,
noted, and voted on
among the world’s one hundred best.
Do not be misled by shade or pungency
that hints at ‘veterinary medicine’,
or recall the horse with bothered anguish,
lips pulled over toothy grin,
because it finds the taste astringent,
but glugs it down anticipating sugar lumps.
Those whose night is not yet done,
swallow and cough, then think,
we’ll keep a sample
just in case at dawn
some dipstick indicates the need
to take the morning-
But, thinking back to rustic night-
when gentlemen would say,
‘pray, after you’, and she
grateful for that, might think
although the maid has, as instructed,
smeared the porcelain with oily essences
obtained from twelve most fragrant herbs,
it would be hard to name them after this.
Experts trained in chasing flavours round the tongue,
might, from the rare bouquet, conclude,
this has it all,
from twelve good men and true,
to Judas.
And now unfinished business,
where the code of honour holds;
no silence speaks.
The number one?
No mention of it in the finer print!
Either no-
or nobody would tell,
as what it celebrates
it keeps,
be warned of this:
its reach
does not exceed
its legendary grasp,
and that is why
these people
young or old
claim that this plant
and all its works
is their one thing;
their
Cosa
nostra,
but,
of course,
they must say that
because, although,
each artichoke
is very like the next,
there could be,
(they may think there is)
lurking amongst them,
one
whose kiss is life,
or death.
Yes,
lurking there amongst them,
The Big Cheese!
The Sedona National Park has been a fertile region for the growth of New Age culture and ideas. Among these latter is the concept of the energy vortex. Exactly what this means is hard to say, but the presence of such a vortex is revealed by its effect on the development of Juniper trees which are abundant in this part of the USA. The vortex causes the tree to twist into a helix as it grows and a map of trees showing this helical pattern should pinpoint the centre of the vortex. It is claimed that this reveals four energy vortexes in the region and that the most powerful of them touches ground on the south-
The short trip from the highway lead to a place of extraordinary beauty and growing amid the gently sloping curves of red rock were indeed many juniper trees with a strong helical bark pattern. The question now remains of whether other domains of sun-
Tell me,
what is this force that twists itself into a vortex
and spins juniper trees
like sugar candy strands?
Tell me,
will it do the same to me,
re-
and fill my frame
as though a turning switch,
timed out,
has been reset?
Sleeper waves, often described as waves that come out of nowhere, are common in all oceans, but they are at their most dangerous on cold rocky coasts where people swept into the water rarely survive. The greatest risk is to onlookers standing on rocks, but they also take victims from beaches. Where these waves are a known hazard, the advice is’ Never turn your back on the Ocean’.
Never turn your back on the Ocean!
The sea people,
gifted with all that we have,
perhaps more,
but lacking only a soul,
seek any chance to acquire one.
Remember this,
there is no malice there.
The hard law of the sea
is taking its just chance
in a business transaction.
So never forget
that this is a market place
where the ebb and the flow
mount slowly enough,
but turn your back once
and you will be taken for all that you have;
where the first and the last intimation
of what is about to happen
is the cold hand
on your shoulder.
Death rock may be a real rock somewhere in the mid to northern part of the Californian coast. However although the hazard it presents is frequently discussed in travel guides and non-
Everyone knows it exists.
It invites,
it suggests that this is a good place
to lie in the sun.
To spread out,
to look at the sea.
How it recedes,
before the waves rise,
then surge and disperse.
Maybe,
and this we can only surmise,
is that people before us have thought,
with surprise,
that this time
the sea is defeated
and fallen back
furthest of all.
Guerneville, on the Russian River, is a resort that is said to be favoured by the gay community.
Human Genetics on the Russian River
All pairs were represented there,
mm ff fm,
like Mendel’s peas
some smooth,
some rough.
So we got chatting to this
psycho-
therapist.
She said,
fm ff mm,
they’re all the same.
The one thing they can never say,
is that alone which would release them. We
felt that we
were relatively
privileged
to hear all this;
of faults caused not by wickedness,
but something less invidious,
fm mm ff!
The land
lady, on the other hand, more down to earth,
when asked, in your establishment, what if a pair,
fm had found they were about to pass
the night where last
mm had been, she said,
mm ff fm,
forget about all that, it’s over-
we yes,
we had this couple here and she
wrote, next morning in the guest book down,
in black and white,
if I could find it.
Yes yes, yes yes, yes yes, and thank
you! Thank you! Thank
you very much.
That was the first time we have done it
in three years!
Look!
You are not going to believe this,
but some folk can waken sleeping animals
by telepathic means.
She could
for one,
and it helped out
so many times,
but this alone will do
to prove the point.
At San Diego zoo
(I think it was)
she turned up with a friend
whose long term aim had been to see giraffes
and find out all about their social life. So
what a shame then. When
they reached the compound,
one, or more of them,
was standing fast
asleep.
It was then
these special powers
for use upon som-
nambulant giraffes
began to come in handy.
One small effort of the will;
the beast awoke
becoming, in that instant much
more interesting and much more fun.
It is hard not to think
that Adam had felt
exactly the same about Eve,
after the first bite of the apple.
Land of the free!
Land of a thousand bookshops,
each with its coffee-
cake-
writers tapping into laptops
hoping to replenish
shelves.
Offerings,
sampled by the staff,
(in their spare time?)
lovingly outlined in wine-
Opportunity to taste the Ginsberg,
not a wine I knew, though I
had heard of it. No note to guide.
What could
the untrained palate make of such
a complex structure?
Bouquet;
then rolled around the tongue
and, smooth in parts,
started to reveal itself
until an aftertaste began
opaque and slightly bitter,
saying
this is old now,
old as earth,
and slightly past its best.
She
said,
airplane food is not too good.
Take this.
He
said, do
you have
explosives, sharp things,
things like that, know what we mean,
and did you pack your bags yourselves?
They
checked out our
finger prints, retinal maps, baggage
collected from the carousel.
Who
is this nice dog?
He seems to like us.
Please
turn out your back-
One green apple! Now we’ve got you!
Thought,
‘Oh my gawd, that’s torn it.’
And, among the other things, we thought,
were
perjury, and,
will our story stand in court,
and
however does that little dog contain itself,
passing by the fruit
on its day off?
What is meant by ‘a rainy ‘ day? When the amount of rainfall on a certain day amounts to 0.01 inch or more, it is said to be a rainy day. From 1000 questions in General Knowledge by Henry Smith.
The Anza-
A rainy day in the Anza Borrego desert?
Green below clouds,
mountain ridge
sucks the air dry
and, neither late, nor soon enough,
weather-
pancakes, stacked high, cried out
for corn syrup. The proprietress serves, rough,
but, as they say, good
hearted her people were here before
Anza and his men came
ahead, the pass casts its long rain
shadow.
Clean, away, deep, but under
a light haze
full five hundred miles of rough track
radiate about The Visitor Centre.
Avoid dehydration,
do not do this, etc., that. Note
no signs of bighorn sheep.
Those white clouds,
more than a mirage,
still
do not come here
that white skull is not unique.
The picture to take,
but you will not see one
to take, one
dollar each.
In this arid, but not waste, a small ad. leans
(pole with two old boards, nailed,
as in some comic strip)
does not say,
‘Deadman’s Gulch,
take care’, instead,
Sixty six
acres of prime
for real
estate’,
(not where)
for sale.Here, perhaps, or
just good place to notify the passing trade.
Went on and found the
ideal, for a lunch break spot,
not prime nor real.
Garden of our own
Eden, first things.
First,
each plant and indeed
each part of every plant, in place.
We were not, then, called on to name them
and could not have done.
Ourselves, insect size on a great leaf,
a man could be lost here
sand, veined,
and, had we zoomed out
seen every branch and every stem
joining the main stream.
Then it began to rain; fine drops
hanging in the air, caressed the skin. The plants
reached out for this. We could not say, had it fallen
to the ground, though it soaked in,
would it have reached the notional depth
of one percent of an inch? But,
had it done, even
so, sheep would have found
nothing to drink here.
Sebastopol is a small town in the wineland north of San Francisco. The name comes from a grudge match between two local worthies in the time of the Crimean war, that lead to some intense infighting. The town is noted for the artistic works of a local (French born?) artist who makes extraordinary constructions from scrap metal and installs them in the gardens of his numerous friends. Among the many interesting shops is Copperfield’s, Books, a secondhand bookshop, which in a part of the world noted for them, is an outstanding example. Stocking weaving was perfected in France by the Huguenot sect.
Number one
best-
gather near the door
and chatter.
Fashionably dressed,
or ranked, like soldiers
blue and red,
some will survive the slaughter and return.
Among the not yet dead
(angels of mercy work)
‘Stockings and Suspender Belts’
a monogram,
labour of an actress in her so-
in this brief acquaintance find that
seamless stocking weaving was
the product of a questing intellect,
Church of England curate
in the reign of Good Queen Bess,
man of the cloth,
who could not find fulfilment in his Sunday work.
She did not mention how, or when, the great
eureka moment came.
Could be, from the pulpit.
looking down, he saw some favoured one
sitting, and his mind
began illicit geometric machinations,
or it came to him
struggling with a turgid sermon:
snakes casting their skins,
Eve’s temptation and his own,
Despite design success,
his monarch would not grant
A Royal Patent.
Perhaps (and honi soit)
she never would admit,
a lack of finger skill in passing
buttons through the fixing hoop.
Whatever! He,
in desperation,
gave, or sold, it to the Hugenots, who,
with gallic cunning,
and a thriving silkworm business
stole the market, only as protestants themselves,
to suffer later retribution.
The mind, at siege,
grappled with the theme
to buy or not
and, in this agony of dreams and indecision,
not the price, five bucks or less,
but a kind of frozen automaton
watched the hand replace it in that sea of spines.
Nothing beside
entrained
the eye.
Home, and entered saucy title on the Internet
feeling exposed
but took no action, only
noting it was once,
and still
exists.
But, as this was not enough,
false memory changed the name by adding ‘silk’,
and now no sign remained,
all traces gone;
actress,
vicar,
hopes of reading on
extinct.
El Capitain, claimed to be the world’s largest granite monolith, presents a formidable face near the western entrance to Yosemite National Park. It rises abruptly from the valley floor and was presumably carved by glacial action. Once considered un-
Hi there, I don’t know much about you,
except that I have heard them say
that once you had a better half who left you.
Again I don’t know much,
although I do know this,
that glaciation, which undid you,
can be fast or slow.
Between you both
not slow enough
to bring about a perfect cleavage.
Impatience, which,
from your sombre features
seems unlikely, ruled. Had it not
your face, a moss-
smooth as a kitchen work-
would shine out above us,
and those young men and girls
who, testing different ways
to find the one to take them through,
would have no further need for boots
pitons and ropes. But equipped
with suction pads on feet and knees and hands
move up, down, or across,
to decorate
your perfect face.
Instead you stand there
with your frown
and wrinkled lip
and cold command.
We have here, although, and we shall come on to that,
we will not say which one,
in terms of volume
and, of course, of weight, but not of height,
(does that surprise you?)
billed ‘The World’s Biggest Tree’.
Don’t get your hopes up.
It just could be we do not know ourselves,
so think of that! But if they ever came to know it,
folk would carve their name, or names,
and, framed and shameless,
stand beside to have their photo taken,
or, with gutless nerve, ask one of us to do it.
Then someone else and someone else,
and on, and on.
Let’s get right down to earth. This
is something you might not believe.
the wood is brittle.
Only good enough for pencil making.
Besides, when one falls
it shatters. Though the fragments cling
together, they have lost their ‘giant’ status,
but even then, remember this,
your once most favourite Aunt,
winks his right eye a little,
perfumed, who brought back from abroad
your special own sandal-
The product of just one such splinter
is more than what you’d need to fill it.
So think of that, together with a list of more amazing facts.
Now, there, or not too far away
we have the worlds tallest.
tall-
Coastal Redwood. We can’t
be too specific. Could you view from space,
you might be gratified to see them all so neatly stacked.
Sharp points almost perfectly displayed.
But, and here’s a thing we do not go for here,
should one stand out above the rest,
you could be fighting, in your limey leftist stance,
a dismal urge to push it back.
The King was in the restaurant
paying what he owed.
The Queen was in the restroom
powdering her nose.
The maid was on the doorstep
opening the door,
when she tripped across the threshold
and fell face-
The mother and her partner,
who had every good intent,
must have seen the situation
as life-
But what they may have taken
for a sorry twist of fate,
could not hide the fact that they
were rather overweight.
The partner took control
and asked her to explain
her needs and motivation
in case she fell again.
There has to be a reason
for everything we do,
but to find it we must learn to take
the time to talk things through.
Please remember, when you answer,
to look me in the eyes,
it creates a bond between us
that will strengthen family ties
and your every tribulation,
is a chance for us to make
direct communication.
We shall learn from your mistake!
But anyone could see,
that, had he fallen to his knees,
the line of sight was off by more
than ninety odd degrees.
Abundance rules.
Milk and honey
overflow.
Apples
oranges
and other fruit,
Stacked
in perfect
pyramidal mounds,
are constantly renewed.
Fine
jets of water
spray down
on green
Leaves.
Health foods abound.
No insects
dive or buzz.
No crawling things
creep,
but up there,
under the skylights,
some birds twitter and fret,
as though trying to escape.
This is a land where a man might do anything,
it is so wide.
Here he could even let his soul expand.
Consider where he came from.
There
he was hemmed in,
confined,
a shepherd with his flock
streaming down a mountain path
and in winter playing on his pipes,
within a citadel of stone
and eyes that look along two thousand years,
But here are footprints dancing through the snow
and summer vastness
lifting up the skies.
Longfellow’s ‘Hiawatha’ was set on the southern shore of Lake Superior, a lake whose spectacular shoreline belies its sinister reputation. The ice-
No breaking waves,
no signs of land.
Then waking braves
and lines of sand
Cadillac Mountain, the highest point in the Acadia National Park on Desert Island in the the state of Maine, is a rounded peak of beautiful pink-
Some mountain!
Some car!
and some approach-
tar-
Sit and
through the windscreen
see the sun’s red rim
in winter, first.
In spring,
or summer, those same rays
fall on Mars Hill, where once
saluted fifty guardsmen to the
rising of the
fifty state star flag.
at four hours thirty three AM.
July the fourth,
one nine six oh.
But
you would not go there now,
unless you relish wind farms;
coursing vanes
extracting from the air
their fifteen megawatts
per year,
of power
per year.
The Pilgrim Fathers set out from Plymouth in 1620 and after the arduous three-
Vanity Fair was a half-
Vanity Fair
Failing God’s grace,
His plan,
the founding fathers must have foundered
in this surf.
His lost sons, watchers on the cape
who saw, out of the east-
its hesitating speed, and not yet knowing
of the soul’s dire need, but fearing rumours
of disease, fled destruction
and wrath to come.
As art is true to life,
or life to art, the sacrifice required revealed itself,
and from this landing place
half of the faithful
took the shortest route
to heaven’s gate.
But now, as hope, replacing faith,
has seen the purpose of the Lord revealed,
men, free to choose, or not to choose,
built here a town
to summarize
to state,
to celebrate,
and yet,
behind this bright facade
a granite tower
casts its grey shadow
south into the light.
Stars
Height
Earth
Turn
Can
Creek
Pork
Beans
Fire
Heat
Night
Fall
Air
Sweet
Coyote call
Hoof
Beat
Snow
Squall
Cold
Rain
Calve
Fall
Graze
Herd
Grow
Green
Lone
Fall
Bone
Break.
Listen to the Cowboy Poet
From Santa Fe with Laughing Eyes
Human Genetics on the Russian River
Cowboy:-
Wikipedia
Cowboy:-
Wikipedia.