BERRY PIE

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Bryce Angell - The outdoors has always been a large part of my life. My father was an outfitter and guide for 35 years and I was there to shoe and care for the horses and help him do the cooking. We took many great trips into the Yellowstone area. Even now that I’m older, we still ride into the Tetons, Yellowstone and surrounding areas. My poems are mostly of personal experience. I am now retired and enjoying life to the fullest. I plan to do more riding and writing.

We started our tradition, homemade berry pie, each night. While camping on the trail, they were a pure perfection bite.
The trail boss and the cook would always pass the pies around. The cowboys filled their mouths so full they couldn’t make a sound.
But we soon found out that homemade pies were not the way to go. ‘Cuz when we got a brand-new cook our tastebuds told us so.
That fateful year the cowboys stood there waiting by the fire. One cowboy said, “My belly says we’re ‘bout to plumb expire.”
The novice cook was Wyatt, and he baked the berry pies. He used no recipe and might as well had closed his eyes.
The cowboys took a bite and crunched down like a bag of rocks. The taste was like the house cat used ‘em for his litter box.
Wyatt guesstimated ‘bout the filling in the pie. And when he offered seconds, ‘twas enough to terrify.
One cowboy said, “I think he cooked the pie deliberately. And every time I gag a bite it’s certain agony.”
Wyatt learned to make the crust. Said, “Grandma taught me well.” But I don’t believe he listened ‘cuz the crust was tough as @#%%!
So, we gathered up his pies and promptly threw ‘em in the trash. I heard one fellow tell him, “We’d been better off with hash!”
If there’s a cowboy code, you don’t call one of yours a fool. I guess we’ll ask forgiveness ‘cuz we up and broke that rule.
Our cowboys’ cooking skills don’t mean a whole lot more than fodder. ‘Cuz most the cowboys that I know could possibly burn water.
So, we turned to desperate measures. Would we vote for pies from town? The only nay was Wyatt. Trail Boss slammed the gavel down!
And now we’re eating berry pie straight from the bakery. We’ll keep this fond tradition ‘cuz homemade was misery.
But someone said that Wyatt wants to give it one more try. The Trail Boss offered his advice: “You make ‘em, say goodbye!”

– Bryce Angell

 

 

 

 

 

– Bryce Angell