my father died 10 years ago this month … everyone knew him as “cowboy russell” a nickname he acquired when he showed up for the first day of high school football practice in his typical rancher’s garb … i wrote this poem for and read it at his funeral — quite the cowboy affair … his hat and lasso were on the casket and the pallbearers wore cowboy shirts and boots … music included kenny roger’s “the gambler” (his favorite song) and “home on the range” … after his burial in the black hills national cemetary, friends and family came back to the ranch for many margaritas