Lost In A Fantasy

Lost In A Fantasy

It's a memory

It's a life

It doesn't exist but in my dreams

Sometimes this is what the best answer seems;

To be lost in a world of belly deep grass

Glossy horse hair

Frisky black calves

The refined silhouettes of colts

Old cedar corrals

A rickety old barn

Fields of green

Some of the most beautiful things ever seen.

Riatas hangin on adobe walls

Hackamores, mecates, spade bits and all

Remuda flowin in

The whisper of the prairie wind

The howl of a lonesome coyote and the stomp of a stud 

The nicker of a tot foal and the bawl of a calf

Riding through the days

The clear and the haze

A dusty road

A vibrant meadow

Racing swiftly through the green

It seems only to be a dream 

A fantasy 

A life unseen

A trance that overpowers your mind

If you don't keep up you'll be left behind

Spurs jangling

Faded sun lingering over the mountains tops

Thundering hooves

Vigor in my heart

Rope in hand

A good ol' horse

And lots of open land.

Luvs, Gussie

A Bronco Twister's Prayer

Bronco Twister's Prayer

It was a little grave yard
  on the rolling foot hill plains:
That was bleached by the sun in summer,
  swept by winter’s snows and rains;
There a little bunch of settlers
  gathered on an autumn day
‘Round a home made lumber coffin,
  with their last respects to pay.

Weary men that wrung their living
  from that hard and arid land,
And beside them stood their women;
  faded wives with toil worn hands.
But among us stood one figure
  that was wiry, straight and trim.
Every one among us know him.
  ‘Twas the broncho twister, Jim.

Just a bunch of hardened muscle
  tempered with a savage grit,
And he had the reputation
  of a man that never quit.
He had helped to build the coffin,
  he had helped to dig the grave;
And his instinct seemed to teach him
  how he really should behave.

Well, we didn’t have a preacher,
  and the crowd was mighty slim.
Just two women with weak voices
  sang an old time funeral hymn.
That was all we had for service.
  The old wife was sobbing there.
For her husband of a life time,
  laid away without prayer.

She looked at the broncho twister,
  then she walked right up to him.
Put one trembling arm around him and said,
  "Pray. Please won’t you Jim?"
You could see his figure straighten,
  and a look of quick surprise
Flashed across his swarthy features,
  and his hard dare devil eyes.

He could handle any broncho,
  and he never dodged a fight.
‘Twas the first time any body ever saw
  his face turn white.
But he took his big sombrero
  off his rough and shaggy head,
How I wish I could remember what
  that broncho peeler said.

No, he wasn’t educated.
  On the range his youth was spent.
But the maker of creation
  know exactly what he meant.
He looked over toward the mountains
  where the driftin’ shadows played.
Silence must have reined in heaven
  when they heard the way Jim prayed.

Years have passed since that small funeral
  in that lonely grave yard lot.
But it gave us all a memory, and a lot
  of food for thought.
As we stood beside the coffin,
  and the freshly broken sod,
With that reckless broncho breaker
  talkin’ heart to heart with God.

When the prayer at last was over,
  and the grave had all been filled,
On his rough, half broken pony,
  he rode off toward the hills.
Yes, we stood there in amazement
  as we watched him ride away,
For no words could ever thank him.
  There was nothing we could say.
Since we gathered in that grave yard,
  it’s been nearly fifty years.
With their joys and with their sorrows,
  with their hopes and with their fears.
But I hope when I have finished,
  and they lay me with the dead,
Some one says a prayer above me,
  like that broncho twister said.



This is one of my favorite poems/songs to listen to.
Don Edwards and Waddie Mitchell did a rendition of it with Don Edwards playing Amazing grace in the background, it is truly beautiful!

Amazing Grace/Bronco Twister's Prayer -- check it out. It is lovely!


Hugs, 
Kricket and Gussie

"sagebrush and speed limit signs"

Border Signs

The smog that lurks just beyond the sign

The love and the land that we're leavin behind

The border line.

The Elko town casinos

The Elko town bars

The rearview mirror scene of ours.

The horses, the hats, the cowboys and ropes

They stand behind us with bowed heads and our hopes.

Mountains and white lines

Sagebrush and speed limit signs.

With dreary hearts and lingering souls we drift on out of old Elko.

Coffee still on our breathe

And like a traitor to my own heart

I find us driftin farther apart. 

A haunting feelin dances in the air

And it just don't seem quite fair.

So with Nevada in our hearts

And Utah on our minds

We'll be wherever our road finds

Forever haunted by these border signs.

A little something I wrote on our way home from Elko!!

-Gussie

Liebster Blogger!

Boots,  Braids and Big Loops was nominated for the Liebster Blog Award by Erin Mullins on Diaries From The Dirt Road, Liz & Adrian Brannan on Buckaroo Barbie, Hillbilly Goddess on Wild & Wooly and Mindy Hoggan on Rodeo Tales and Gypsy Trails.  THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! :)

Also, a GREAT BIG HUGE THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO READS OUR BLOG! WE LOVE AND APPRECIATE YOU!!!!

Rules

This award is given to new or up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers...the award is then passed along to other bloggers in the same category to help spread the word and support one another.  What to do: 

1. Each blogger should post 11 random facts about themselves. 

2. Answer the questions the tagger has set for you, then create 11 new questions for the bloggers you pass the award to. 

3. Choose 11 new bloggers (with less than 200 followers) to pass the award to and link them in your post. 

4. Go back to their page and tell them about the award. 

5. No tag backs.

About the Sisters:

1. LOVES; HORSES, COFFEE and JESUS!
2. Likes;
   Gussie: reading, the old time cowgirls, nail polish, lipstick, boots and clothes, what can I say, there's still that "girl" part in cowgirl. Kricket: music, black and white photos, hanging out in the saddle shop listening to stories, roping, riding, meeting new people!
3. We would love to meet Bertha Blancett, it sounds to us she was a real bad *ss in her day :)Also, Annie Oakley, Mabel Strickland and all the other early cowgirls!
4. Nicknames: Many of you probably don't know that Gussie's real name is actually Agusta but we call her Gus, Gussie, Gussie Lou, Lou and almost anything but Agusta- she prefers it that way!
   When Gussie was just a little runt, she couldn't say Kricket's name. So she said "Chet Chet" it's one of Kricket's nicknames to this day. Plus, Krick and uh well many other things hehe
5. Bet you guys didn't know we both learned to play the fiddle and Gussie also learned to play the guitar. Krick still plays sometimes but it's time for a new fiddle! Never enjoyed contests but we like to play on the porch and by the fire with dad!
6. Favorite Horses;
   --Gussie: Smokey and Biscuit--Kricket: Paint
7. Something very important to us:
   --Gussie: Horses. I wouldn't want to live without 'em.
   --Kricket: Honesty
8. Favorite Artist:
   --Gussie: Liberty Proffit Day and Adrian Buckaroogirl. Adrian's "Crazy Cowgirl" is amazing
   --Kricket: Liberty Proffit Day
9. Something we collect:
   --Gussie: Notebooks full of things I've written. I get attached easily, so I guess there is a collection of horses in my heart.
   --Kricket: old rusty things that I find in random places!
10. Something I was fascinated with:
    --Gussie: I've always been fascinated with horses, still am. When I was little I rode a big horse and it always fascinated me that he took care of me the way he did and that he knew when I cried to just let me hang around his neck. Horses are in that realm between God and worldly things.
    --Kricket: Rocks! I used to come home with my pants and hoodies' pockets full of rocks and snail shells after hunting with dad! Mom loved it when it was time to do laundry! ;)I still am fascinated but I don't collect them much anymore haha
11. Something you enjoy daydreaming about:
    --Gussie: Even though I do enjoy it, I don't have much choice. I daydream about horses. On a constant. If you give me time to think about anything, there's horses running through my mind.
    --Kricket: Bits and spurs! I have a collection of pictures of bits and spurs that I like, I just like to look a lot because I can't afford them all!

Questions For Us! ~We didn't want to answer A TON of questions, so we picked a few from everyone's list

1. Song that makes your heart happy when it comes on the radio?
   --Spanish Ranch Cowboy by Adrian and Sage In Her Hair by Dave Stamey
2. Why do you blog?
   --Because we thought other bloggers were cool, and why not?
3. Do you prefer the desert or trees?
   --Anywhere on a horse. - the desert is hot, the pines are pretty but no matter what, oakbrush sucks.
4. If you rope, how old were you when you started roping?
   --Kricket started when she was like 8, Gussie started when she was 13 or 14 ish
5. What makes you, YOU!
   --Gussie: Boots and hats and the way I talk, but most of all, horses.
   --Kricket: The people and things I love and that make me happy; my family, horses, sunflowers, music, being outside, and lots of other things I can't think of right now!
6. What makes your heart skip a beat and pitter patter with excitement?
   --Gussie: Nice horses and cute guys on nice horses. Baby colts, songs, I get chills a lot when I hear songs or when I watch buckin horses outta the chute. I like 'em I guess.
   --Kricket: Seeing little kids that can flat ride, or are just learning to rope and they are just tiny! It makes me so happy! 
7. Favorite rodeo event?
   --Saddle Bronc riding. No contest.
8. Who is your biggest role model?
   --Liz and Adrian Brannan and Emily Fuhriman 
9. If you had a million dollars what would you do with it?
   --Buy a ranch, a bunch of good colts and some cows :)
10. What's a hobby you enjoy?
    --Gussie: Riding horses, roping, writing poetry and stories, goofing off and being professionally out of control.
    --Kricket: Making cinches, fixing things- I like seeing how stuff works and learning how to do things myself. I like to draw, but I have to be in the right mood for anything to turn out!
11. Favorite drink?
    --Gussie: COFFEE
    --Kricket: Arizona tea, the strawberry lemonade one! And coffee... Random fact- I am a very indecisive person, as I am sure you can tell!
12. Favorite piece of clothing?
    --Wild rags!
13. How do you want people to remember you?
    --Gussie: I wanna be the girl that spoke your heart when you couldn't, with my writing. I wanna be the girl that could really rope and the girl that was funny and smart and the girl that all the horses fell in love with. Also, the girl that could work hard and look pretty when she did it. I wanna be a Buckaroo Barbie.
    --Kricket: A really awesome, tough but dainty, young lady who did what she wanted to do, was successful, and loved herself and her life.

Nominees:
Dang the no tag back rule!!!

- Jessica Hedges at Jessica Hedges Cowboy Poetry
- Jennifer Whiteley at Ramblings From a Ranch Wife
- Emily Fuhriman at Fuhriman Ranch
- Adrian Brannan at Buckaroogirl
- Jaboe Garrett at One Eared Horse Snort


Questions For Our Nominees:

1. Favorite childhood pet?
2. Something that makes you happy?
3. Something not everyone knows about you?
4. What you like to learn about?
5. If you've been bucked off, when was your first time and what happened?
6. Favorite pair of boots?
7. If you collect something, what is it?
8. Value that is most important to you?
9. Are you someone who likes to stand out? Or are you someone who doesn't like to draw a lot of attention to yourself?
10. What is your most treasured achievement or award and goal reached?
11. "Your" hobby, what's your thing?

This thing literally took Kricket and I like 4 days to complete. So hard for us haha 

Thanks though!!! :) hope you enjoyed it -- 

Luvs, 

The Keetch Sisters