The Diamond from Coal

By Ranger

We are taking a trip my friend
A ranch out west is our journey’s end
Here we meet an old, weathered man
He sits on a porch, whittling knife in hand
He smiles at us and shaves at his stick
He asks if we had a nice trip
Now he stretches out and sighs
There is a twinkle in his eyes
Do we want to hear a story?

 

Not so long ago in our history
We meet the heroes of our story
To the lonesome, open plains we must go
To the crowded, quiet bunkhouse we go
One bunk is empty, not slept in at all
In the quiet barn a lantern shines in a stall
We hear the sounds of a horse stirring
A calming voice is murmuring
A foal is being born this night

 

The struggle, the death, the birth a foal
It is a boy, a colt as pure black as coal
His curious, shiny eyes glance around
But the mare’s heart beat can not be found
The cowboy stays with him all night
He stays through morning’s first light
No surrogate mother can be found
The colt lies feebly on the ground
Two choices lay before our cowboy

 

A choice our cowboy must make
To leave this colt his heart will break
Neglect his duties, his job he might lose
He must face his boss with this news
The boss is not happy, but he is fair
He knows a cowboy and his horse are a pair
He sees the colt and he’s impressed
He knows our cowboy has the best
Do what you can, he says, save your colt

Our cowboy works for days on end
Working hard to save his new friend
Steady feedings, nightly vigilance
Our cowboy works with untiring diligence
Coal, the black colt grows strong
He is eager to join the yearlings in throng
At a year old, Coal and his friends are left alone
For a year he neglects the friendship already sown
But our cowboy never forgets

 

Two years have passed since Coal’s birth
Young life gallops across the earth
It is time for a friendship to renew
And to see if it will hold true
Rounded up, the yearlings run
They will be saddle broken, one by one
Coal trots defiantly into the ring
Even as a two year colt he looks like a king
Every cowboy wants a chance at him

 

Rider after rider from his back is thrown
Not one his fighting spirit will own
Once again he is put in the corral
But still no rider will he allow
The opening of the gate is an expected noise
But those words, he knows that voice
The voice that spoke to him in his infant sickness
The voice of assurance and true kindness
Our cowboy has come to take his turn

 

Ever so slowly our cowboy moves near
Coal stands steady without a single fear
With gentle hand our cowboy greets
With calming words he speaks
Coal stands, though he knows what is coming
Any weight in the saddle and he will go lunging
For this our cowboy has already planned
An older horse is brought in, who Coal is sure to befriend
Stepping into the saddle, our cowboy rides the older horse

 

Now he sees, when tied old horse’s saddle horn
Coal understands, for this role he was born
Born be a member of a partnership
Born to be bound in a friendship
Bold spirit, never to be tamed
Steady cowboy truly the same
Never tamed, but befriended, the bold stallion Coal
Proud is our cowboy, of the king raised from a sickly foal
Through danger, through fun, the bond is strengthened

 

Years of hard work, Coal never fully tamed
And our steady cowboy truly the same
Our host smiles at us as we sit there
We listen, spell bound in our chairs
Coal went down one day, the old man starts
In a way he repaid our cowboy for his part
Our cowboy saved his life as an orphaned foal
Coal saved our cowboy, well mostly whole
Our host runs a hand over gimped leg

 

As we leave I see tears in your eyes
Yes, I know why your heart cries
I will tell you the rest of their tale
You see their friendship never failed
When the cougar attacked, Coal won the fight
He repaid his dear friend, a life for a life
Thus the last full measure was given
Cheer up; they’ll ride together in heaven
Coal, under great pressure, produced a diamond of true friendship