Another Path

Another path to sundown.
the cowboy rubbed his back
and thought, with love, of rum relief
tucked safely in his pack.

Thoughts, wistfully, of father
trod lightly through his mind--
of going home to dash or prove
the truth of what he’d find.

On reaching an arroyo
he reined a weary mount
and, from his vest, took out to read
his mother’s grim account.

Another path to sundown,
though prudence can advise
the oracle who rules the soul
may see with distant eyes.

In nature's own cathedral,
beneath the milky way,
he made a vow to reach his home
before another day.

Another path to sundown,
to peace for which he’s yearned,
he isn’t home and yet he is...
the prodigal returned.