SPURS

On boots they jingle, western wear for the cowboy,

Listen for them as they approach; they have a sound.

Spurs that spin, dress up a western look,

Worn by the cowboy, cool as he moves.

On a ranch, somewhere in a western town,

A boot with spurs, clicking as the sun goes down.

Take off your boots and rest for the night,

Jingling, clicking spurs again at morning’s light.

                          Keith Garrett

              SHADOW RIDERS

Men crumble; their sins they can not hide, they run,

From the expressions on their faces, aging lines of haunt.

One of them runs, the other chases; they both run together,

One tries to hide his guilt and pain; the other chases after forgetting.

Shadow riders, at different times they are the rider, the other prey,

They are from a time of civil unrest; they kill and then die in a place for them.

It takes its toll, the hunt, and the run, tears from men dry up in the sun,

Nothing more to be said, two dying men soon would be dead, blood on their hands,

One’s knife in the desert sand, a gun left on a deserted land,

Walk in a different direction, shadow riders are never seen again.

                                          Keith Garrett

               PHOTO ALBUM,

Open it up, only empty pages are before you,

One by one, we add a picture, a scene from time,

Frozen within pages of a book, hidden with each turn.

It can not hold all that we see, not enough room for our history,

A photo album to pass along, share memories of life and family.

Not a movie, piece by piece, a glimpse of an adventure of life,

Turn the pages and find that with the passing time a book fills.

We become frozen in time, memories that we leave behind,

Expressions shared in pictures, we close the book on a simple time.

                                      Keith Garrett

      LORD OF KINGS

Rulers of many lands, they were different but greedy the same,

Treasures valued beyond the real purpose of a living man.

Since the birth of man and the rising sun, war is never done,

Blood spilled with time, lies and guilt, death seems but a crime.

Some Kings sit upon thrones of deceit and evil deeds,

I wonder if there ever was one who thought more about the common good?

The Lord of Kings is a mysterious one, creator of all things great and kind,

Master of Earthly scenes, creator of the universe, that which men build and destroy.

                        Keith Garrett

       GOD IS IN THE RAIN

Clouds form; they turn dark with storm,

Drops fall from the sky, cold and warm.

More and more as they touch treetops,

Drip by drip they trickle down to the ground.

Into the rivers, flowing into the oceans as one,

Drops of rain cover lakes, slowly filling with time.

From the mountains the water makes its way down,

Soaking the hills to create life, within the flowers and grass.

Let the rain fall; God is in the rain, in the drops that are upon you,

God is in the rain as it comes down; God soaks this world with life.

                      Keith Garrett

           A LIST OF THINGS TO BE

Never an astronaut, dancing slowly upon the moon,

Flying in a jet across the sky, no, never did I ever fly.

A football star throwing the ball far, a dream that won’t be,

Under the lights, a victory on a Super Bowl night.

What is it like to be a movie star pretending to be many things,

Known everywhere, this is not what I was born to be.

An Olympic star, a racer of cars, I wanted to be, but that’s not me,

A great writer, a hero of sorts would be something I might be.

A rescuer of the down and out, a conqueror of homelessness,

I may not be an Einstein of genius, I am good enough for me,

A list of things to be, how much can one man need?

                   Keith Garrett

            A BEGGAR, A THIEF

He wanders the streets, a taste for food, a thirst for drink,

Cold to the bones, waiting for a warm place to sleep.

Asking for that which comforts his pain,

Pride and self-respect are put aside.

A human being, a man with a story,

A beggar today without any glory,

Taking what he wants, no morals or remorse.

Criminal thoughts, a good man not,

Working for nothing, he does not care.

He steals anything; he has no heart,

A thief many times over, a quitter of sorts.

A beggar, a thief, so many differences of course.

               Keith Garrett, 

 ON MY WAY TO THE COUNTRY

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, I’m on my way to the country where the Sinaloa Cowboys live,

I came from the streets of Philadelphia, my hometown.

I’m visiting a friend there who did straight time in prison,

A stolen car and spare parts made him the new timer.

When you’re alone and trapped sometimes you need to be tougher than the rest,

Walk like a man, in there people wear two faces.

The promise he made to me was to walk the line,

“He said,” my best was never good enough, “I told him,” whatever you need you’ve got it.

When I arrived he had sad eyes, something was missing in him,

We walked down to the river doing the E. Street shuffle.

In school he was the wrestler, working on a dream,

He wanted to be one step up, he was strong like he had two hearts.

I believe with every wish there’s a price,

One day I’ll get my beautiful reward.

We watched Wild Billy’s circus story,

Listened to some songs called the New York City Serenade

And when the Saints go marching in.

               Keith Garrett

            BEST FRIENDS

Do you remember them, those left behind as a child?

You ran under the sun, played until the day was done.

Games played on a long-ago summer day, old friends here today,

There are times when great friends become strangers lost in the

background.
Again, as our journey moves on, a stranger we meet may turn into
That best friend,

For just a moment in your life, a best friend passes by, another is
Best friend forever.

What are best friends? There is a connection, something that
Brings us together,

Just as any relationship, it may grow or crumble with time, give and take,
To learn.

To be best friends with anyone in this life is a valuable gift;
Take hold,

Best friends I once had in a town surrounded by hills and trees.

It was a reality for me at a time when I really needed it; today
They are everywhere,

Some are closer than I did believe, others now a part of the breeze,
Maybe the sea.
Best friends from here and there, now and then, maybe, again and again.

                                Keith Garrett

     SECRET FRIEND

I was a small boy when my first friend appeared,

So long ago as now it is that I am much older than.

A friend that was there whenever I was lonely and scared,

I did talk to back then, laughed and ran in a field of weeds.

As I got a year older, this friend was not by my side, wandered,

I would meet others, and my friend would stand across the street,

Pacing back and forth, I was growing older as my friend remained a child.

Slowly, I had not much in common with my secret friend; the games changed,

The more I wandered and found, the further apart we grew.

My secret friend was leaving me; I couldn’t hold on as much as I
Thought I wanted,

My friend was leaving me as it was time to go, just as I went away, a
friend no more.
Keith Garrett