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The Nameless Pioneers
| Open Poetry #17 |
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The Nameless Pioneers |
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John Yaws Senior Member
since 1999-10-09
Posts 860Texas 
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The Nameless Pioneers A victim of a blizzard, perhaps the burning sand- Or cornered by Apaches, with a pistol in his hand. Bitten by a rattler, to die there all alone… The only thing to tell the tale, a pile of bleaching bones. Perhaps he fell in battle, wearing blue, or maybe gray- Perhaps a comrade near him, heard the bullet, saw him sway. Perhaps he fell in Germany, or maybe even France, Or on the beach at Normandy, without a fighting chance. Perhaps it was the fever, out on the western trail- Or cholera, or smallpox, that caused the man to fail. Whatever may have slain him, be sure he did his best- It was the nameless pioneers who opened up the West. Perhaps he died with Bowie, there at the Alamo- A name now etched in granite, and little more to show… He made have rode with Custer, to die out on the plain- Memorials and tombstones, are all that now remain. It doesn’t really matter, the fact is that he died- It’s better far to try and fail, than never to have tried… The measure of a man I guess, is do your very best- It was the nameless pioneers who opened up the West. |
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| © Copyright 2001 John R. Yaws - All Rights Reserved | |||
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Sunshine
Administrator
Member Empyrean
since 1999-06-25
Posts 63354Listening to every heart |
Perhaps this then is one of your best, the last stanza wrapping it up tight and fine... well done, Sir! |
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EagleScorpion Senior Member
since 2000-03-08
Posts 1644Here, Now, Forever |
geez, looking back on how it was back then, we sure have it easy today! thanks to those guys. Very, very good poem, John. |
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Magnus
since 2001-10-10
Posts 14135South Carolina, USA |
Well said..and if we had not had them..would we have what we do today? Those bones have carried us a very long way. |
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