Campfire Tales

"The fire crackles, embers glow bright,
Cowboys gather in the hush of night,
Shadows dancing on weathered faces,
Each man lost in far-off places.

Boots in the dust, hats tipped low,
Stories rise as the night winds blow,
Of wild mustangs and rivers crossed,
Of friends remembered, and loved ones lost.

Laughter mingles with the coyote's cry,
Sparks drift upward to the open sky,
Legends born where the sagebrush sways,
And dreams ride out on the Milky Way.

The campfire's warmth, the circle's trust,
Tales spun from grit, from hope, from dust,
Beneath the stars, the West reveals
Its heart in every tale it heals.

Coffee brews in battered tin,
The scent of smoke on weathered skin,
Boots propped up on fallen logs,
Stories shared with loyal dogs.

Old harmonicas softly play,
Songs of longing, work, and play,
The flicker paints on canvas coats
The silent dreams each cowboy totes.

Ghost stories told with a wink and grin,
Of haunted trails and phantom kin,
Of silver mines and buried gold,
Of secrets never fully told.

The fire's glow reflects in eyes
That have seen a thousand sunrise skies,
And as the embers settle low,
The bonds of brotherhood only grow.

For when the night is deep and wide,
And all the world is cast aside,
The campfire tales, both bold and true,
Keep the cowboy spirit shining through."