A Man’s Gotta ‘Do’

A Man's Gotta 'Do'

Sittin' on the rusty tailgate
There on my beat-up old Ford truck
Staring out across the coulee
Thinkin' 'bout bein' so joint-stuck

I studied the darker shapes
Of the cattle by the ol’ water hole
And wondered if it was time
To confess my strength bein’ stole

If a man don't speak it out loud,
It just may not be quite so true
I sure don’t want to bring it on
Any sooner than I have to

But it's true that my ol' saddle
Feels twenty pounds more than before
And I know I’m mendin’ slower
After long nights on the dance floor

Just yesterday someone asked me
To sit while some ladies still stood
It’s gettin' hard to trim my toes
My socks don’t go on like they should

I don’t bend easy anymore
Not so well as I did last year
And sometimes, when I straighten up
My low back gets stabbed by a spear

I can’t move so fast these days
Sittin', even for a short spell,
My hips seem to get rusted up
Standin', I just can’t move too well

Most mornings when I wake up
Some new body part hurts for sure
Mostly my back feels like I need
To go find some doc for a cure

If I can’t do what a man does,
Of what use anymore am I?
When that day comes along to stay,
That will be a good day to die

But I repaired that saggin’ gate
And shoveled snow off of the drive
I made my wife's coffee this morn'
Helpin' her come fully alive

I walked a mile in snow today
Thankful I never once fell down
Then played tug-a-rope with ‘ol Maze
And took out trash when back from town

My son called me, we chatted long
He asked for some advice ‘bout things
I answered him with God's wisdom
Some wise men have taught me sage things

And after my darlin’ sweet bride
Got her back rubbed some late last night,
She smiled and, moanin’, spoke softly
That I could still massage just right

I generally can yet do
Man’s top callings and his duties
My sight still works across the plains
I can still enjoy God’s beauties

And I can still draw and shoot straight
To safeguard folks and to provide
And my woman's still as purty
As the first day she was my bride

So for today it seems I can
Yet do the essentials I must
I’m grateful that I’m still of use
When not, Lord send me back to dust

by Rik Goodell
© 2023 All rights reserved

Thank you Gregory Mayse for once again providing your excellent artwork to accompany my poetry. You've provided a number of fine art pieces to either inspire or flesh-out my rhyming stories.

To see more of Mr. Mayse's work, visit his website: https://www.gregorymayse.com/