An Attempt at Poetry

I’m no poet (yet), but I made an attempt at poetry. Reading Tolkien first opened my eyes to the importance of poetry in a story. I used to skim over such sections, regarding rhyme and verse as an awkward speed bump that just slowed the plot.

I don’t feel that way anymore.

Poetry and songs are beginning to awake new inspiration in me. I see them in many beloved stories, such as Heidi, which I just finished for the first time as an adult. And thanks to a friend and fellow writer, I want to embark on poetic quests of my own. I’m only just beginning to grasp their value, at least enough to throw my feeble attempt into the world.

If Cowboys Were Hobbits

If cowboys were hobbits,

They’d all be very fat indeed.

Moseying across the Shire,

Mounted upon pudgy steeds.

They’d push their herds

Of round and hairy horned cattle

Over rolling hills of green,

All the while singing in the saddle.

Their tunes would rise aloft,

Shining bright and merry,

Singing for their gentle cows

Along the way to Buckleberry Ferry.

With waistcoats so bright

And shiny buckles so wide,

They’d push to new pastures

‘Til it was time to return inside.

Leaving the cattle grazing,

They’d go to a feast within.

Tables heaped high with viddles,

With plenty to spare for kin.

A hearty brew awaits

As a reward for a long hard day.

The pipes are lit, the fire blazing,

While a cowboy begins to play.

The fiddle comes out,

Singing tunes of long ago.

Spurred boots thump the ground

With the sawing of the bow.

The music goes on into the night

As the stars appear above,

While our cowboys share

Many tales they all love.

Early to rise they are not,

For they know round the bend,

Their cattle will be waiting there

Beyond the tree above Bag End.

I want to continue more down this path. Spring is coming, and with it, I am embarking on a journey to discover more about the Lord’s Creation, what it reveals about Him, and how He calls us – His image-bearers – to add to beauty in the act of sub-creation.