CHOICES

Far, far, so far, the distant shore;
It calls come back... where you belong.
Far, far, so far the rocky crest;
It calls come here, to sing your final song.

I love the coast with its pounding surf,
Each day provides a different thrill,
The sand, the ships, the gulls in flight,
A way of life that fascinates me still.

And I love the snow capped mountain tops,
With their proud and mystic regal air.
And hiding stands of Aspen, Scrub and Evergreens:
Are purple towers of granite, stark and bare.

Can I ignore their call for my return?
Each holds so many  special memories,
Of rugged trails, of rippling streams,
Of crabs, of clams, and the salt sea breeze.
  
Yet there is one more place that calls to me,
Where I spent younger years, enjoyably;
Where you can reach out and almost touch a star.
Where coyotes howl and where winds blow free.

There you’ll find one lonely stunted Pine,
There you’ll find no cause for haste nor speed.
Solitude and silence make time stand still,
But you are free to roam, just like a tumbleweed.

So when I choose that final resting place,
Will it be coastal shore or mountain peak?
I must go there, with bright and smiling face;
Will it provide the peace and quiet I sorely seek?

Now as I contemplate the choices given me...
I think that Lonesome Pine could use some company.
There I will be content and like the wind, be free;
 Where the gopher and fox need have no fear of me;
And where the Earth and Sky go on infinitely,
In that vast expanse that’s called the Lone Prairie.