During my last year of college, I was fortunate enough to meet a red-headed spit fire of a friend named Meranda. She was from the rough and tumble town of Elko, Nevada, and she introduced me to one of the loves of my life: Cowboy Poetry. More specifically, to The Annual Cowboy Poetry Gathering that happens once a year in the dead middle of winter in – you guessed it – Elko, Nevada.
At that time I already had a pretty sincere love of poetry and of country music and of The Man from Snowy River – so for me to love this gathering of cowboy poets was not much of a stretch.
Their website describes it this way:
“‘The Gathering’ is a week-long coming-together of people rooted in the poetry, music, and arts of cowboy country. It is a delightful, immersive experience for those who appreciate the rural West’s boundless creativity. It is an open-hearted occasion to forge connections and grow knowledge among, and with, people who live life on the land. It’s a mid-winter, multigenerational, merrymaking event full of ranch-y folk and ranch-y food, art, gear, film, discussions, dance, music, verse, and more. It is the place to talk cowboy poetry. And, it’s a darn good time for all!
First produced in 1985, by a small group of folklorists and poets, the Gathering has grown into a national and international happening. Expect a full week of entertaining and educational programs highlighting cultural expression of the rangeland West. If you do it right (and there’s really no way to do it wrong), you’ll listen, you’ll laugh, you’ll reflect, you’ll connect, you’ll learn, you’ll cavort, you’ll live tradition, and you’ll leave refreshed in the creative possibility of the West.”
Refreshed in the creative possibility. I love that explanation.
Ellen Jenny Watkins says this about creativity:
“Aside from the personal enrichment that comes from flexing our creative muscles, doing so helps us to think outside the box. … When you practice creativity in whatever form it feels good to you, you’ll also begin to question things happening around you.
As you explore your creativity, you stretch into more in-depth problem-solving methods. You also begin to look at situations from different perspectives: up close, far away, and even ‘upside down.’
I don’t believe you have to drop everything in order to change your life – the simplest things can create the biggest shift. You might eventually decide to make big changes, but they will be informed, personal, insightful choices…”
The simplest things can create the biggest shift.
One of my favorite books is called Cattle, Horses, Sky, and Grass.
It was published 30 years ago and you can’t buy it – at least not new – because it’s out of print.
It’s a beautiful and diverse collection of Cowboy Poetry. I was with Meranda in Elko for The Gathering in the year it was launched and because of that timing, I got to have several of the featured poets sign my book.
My little 90s heart was thrilled.
When another dear friend of mine was teaching Creative Writing ten years later, she let me teach a unit on Cowboy Poetry. The students had to heartily flex their creative muscles to come up with original, cadenced, readable (and often funny) poems to share with the class. Most of us knew little about cowboy life and cowboy traditions, but I loved teaching them what I had learned about Cowboy Poetry, and gosh, did we have fun in the creativity of it all!
I can’t wait to hear about how you’re creatively opening yourself up to possibility and potential. Let the simplest things create your biggest shift! And if you’re stuck, I’d love to help.
PS If you want a worksheet to get you started, go to the ‘printables’ section of this website.
PPS If you want to read one of my favorite examples of the genre, you can do so here. It was written in 1907.
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