Grandpa's Poem

Born in La Lande,

Just North of the Rio Grande,

The little cowpoke,

who knew not his name,

he would grow to a simple kind of fame,

hidden from the world to keep his quiet countenance,

safe and sound and learning each day,

how to rope and how to ride,

all the tricks of the cowboy trade,

from boy to man a soldier he became,

Returning home to find at last,

his past, his name, happily, true loves flame,

A little wild, a little free,

Starting a family tree,

with a bright little girl and two bouncing boys,

All bringing him untold griefs and joys,

The tree growing with each new addition,

Each listening to the old renditions,

Passing on the old stories, with all their glories,

Now all grown, some have flown to far away places,

Only me, a grandchild, has stayed behind,

to remind us that our family tree grand as it may be,

began with the little cowpoke from La Lande.