The Cowboy Prayer
O Lord, I've never lived where churches grow;
I've
loved creation better as it stood
That
day you finished it, so long ago,
And
looked upon your work and called it good.
Just
let me live my life as I've begun!
And
give me work that's open to the sky;
Make
me a partner of the wind and sun,
And
I won't ask a life that's soft and high.
Make
me as big and open as the plains;
As
honest as the horse between my knees;
Clean as the wind that blows behind the rains
Free
as the hawk that circles down the breeze.
Just
keep an eye on all that's done and said;
Just
right me sometime when I turn aside;
And guide me on the long, dim trail ahead –
That stretches upwards towards
the
Great Divide.
- Badger Clark
Note: This is one of many takes on the Cowboy Prayer, all of which are attributed to Badger Clark. This is the most common one we've found in our neck of the woods. Other versions contain an additional half or even full stanza. - BMG