{"id":20978,"date":"2024-06-12T00:29:56","date_gmt":"2024-06-12T06:29:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/?p=20978"},"modified":"2024-06-10T17:30:45","modified_gmt":"2024-06-10T23:30:45","slug":"integrity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/2024\/06\/12\/integrity\/","title":{"rendered":"INTEGRITY"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
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\u2019m 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.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The story goes of two old ranchers trading off their land. They promised with a handshake. Something we don\u2019t understand.<\/p>\n

Both cowboys stood true to their word. A handshake was the rule. They\u2019d both learned honesty was better than a crooked fool.<\/p>\n

In the good old days a promise with a handshake closed the deal. It didn\u2019t need a witness with a signature and seal.<\/p>\n

But time and personalities have pushed the trusted line. We fudge a little here and there. Declare, \u201cIt\u2019s all just fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

To say your word is worth the paper that it\u2019s written on, requires the most integrity. Those days of trust are gone.<\/p>\n

Now when we make a promise, shake our hands the golden style. You gotta wonder what\u2019s behind the corners of a smile.<\/p>\n

Our attorneys give us council. They are masters of the law. Do we heed their sound advice or push the trusted line to raw?<\/p>\n

Integrity will show the world what kind of man you are. \u2018Cuz John Q. Public turns away if you ain\u2019t no shining star.<\/p>\n

Grandma taught me, \u201cReputation follows you around. If your work is so darned shady, brother, you are going down.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut if you\u2019ve worked to keep your name with honest country souls, your reflection in the mirror shows what the world already knows.\u201d<\/p>\n

My father\u2019s words were, \u201cKeep your promise. Show integrity. Your reputation\u2019s earned if you\u2019re one crooked SOB.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf your handshake causes you to lose a little cash. Remember, keep your promise. Then your name no one can bash.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t forget the little guy. We tend to overlook. Keep your promise to be fair and he won\u2019t feel like he\u2019s been took.\u201d<\/p>\n

His words were so compelling like a punched and bloody nose. Or when I yelled at Mom. She spanked me with the garden hose.<\/p>\n

I told my father I would always think of his good name. I made a promise that I\u2019d keep a good name just the same.<\/p>\n

And when I go to bed at night there\u2019s one thing I don\u2019t fear. \u2018Cuz Grandma got it right as I gaze squarely in the mirror.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The story goes of two old ranchers trading off their land. They promised with a handshake. Something we don\u2019t understand. Both cowboys stood true to their word. A handshake was the rule. They\u2019d both learned honesty was better than a crooked fool. In the good old days a promise with a handshake closed the deal. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","_pvb_checkbox_block_on_post":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[160,2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-20978","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-cowboy-poetry","7":"category-commentary"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20978","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20978"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20978\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20979,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20978\/revisions\/20979"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20978"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20978"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20978"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}