Cowboy Bill
 by Bill Daniels, Po8
 
Bill Graysen was a cowboy 
as odd as that might seem 
but on the trail in life and death 
Bill knew what being cowboy means
 
He knew it wasn’t clothing 
cause he never really dressed the part 
I think he sensed it’s something deeper 
something springing from the heart
 
He lived his life his own way 
steered his sail boat with the breeze 
He liked to put the top down 
Got year round harvests with his dwarf  
fruit trees
 
A skilled and able counselor 
He knew what his license was for 
from pleading down the deuces 
to being a champion for celebrities like  
Zsa Zsa Gabor
 
And friends, he did love horses 
guess they left him feeling free 
In camp he’d always pitch in
He was one of those folks you’d always  
be happy to see.
 
I’d heard that he took sick 
but he never let on that it was rough 
His Susan called him “stoic” 
that’s a Greek word meaning “tough”
 
But knowin’ Cowboy Billy 
wasn’t Greek was on his mind 
I think he figured “cowboy up” 
was a legacy he’d leave behind
 
Cause Bill was loyal, kind and funny, 
resolute down to his genes 
the kind of man you would call “friend” 
Who taught us all what Cowboy means.
 
August 15, 2010,
Los Angeles, California