Two of a Kind
I thought he’d lost his mind
That cold December day
When he came draggin’ in
That little snake poor bay,
Lord, what a sight
He looked near dead
And there ain’t no way
That neck will hold up that head,
For a two year old past
He wasn’t very big
And those little old legs
Why they’ll snap like a twig,
Now this man knows horses
At least I thought he did
But, I sure think he missed this one
When he turned in his bid,
Said, “He don’t look like much now, son
But a good worming, plenty of feed and hay,
This little ugly duckling
He’ll make a good one some day!”
Well I’ll take your word
Sure hope you’re right
He said, “Son you’ll find out later in life,
It’s not the size of the man in the fight.”
He said, “Merry Christmas son”
But some rules I enforce
Keep him fed, keep him shod, treat him kind,
Fact is, every kid needs a good horse,
So I set about doing
The task at hand
I gave him a name, fattened him up,
And turned him out with Dad’s band,
He was a pleasure to break
Never offered to buck
Sure had an easy way of moving
I don’t think this was pure luck,
Yeah, Grandad could sure pick ‘em
A mighty fine cowboy in his day
And if he told you something
Pardoner, it would be that way,
We’re sure gonna miss him
We lost him last spring
And it’s sure rough on me
When those Christmas Bells ring,
He knew good horses, good saddles and cows
A good judge of character in a man
He taught me patience, determination
And the worth of a gentle hand,
Lord, the cowboys in this country
We’ve lost a good hand
But somehow it’s easier knowing
Now, he rides for your brand
Well, me and Ole Bay are still riding pastures
Man, what a pleasure to ride
He does all that you ask him
Seems to do it with pride,
He helped me raise two fine sons
Never complained or backed his ears
He took care of those boys
Through their learning years,
Sure, he’s getting a little harder to keep
But for twenty-five years, he’s been a good friend
Could have sold him a hundred times,
But he’ll be with me to the end,
Lord, Ole Bay is loping up your trail now
And me and Ma and the boys, we’ll miss him of course
Lord, would you ask my old Granddad
To take care of this good horse© 1998, Jay Snider, All rights reserved
These words may not be reprinted or reposted without the author's written permission.