Inspirations
Our founder Carol Ray was a woman of many talents. Before her career began as an escrow officer, Carol worked as a housekeeper and cook for disabled veterans on her brother-in-law’s ranch, where her husband Bill worked as a ranch hand. Their days were long and filled with hard work, but Carol never complained. She focused on the good times and the memories they were building with their children that they could look back on. Carol used poetry as an outlet to express herself. She left behind a series of poems for her family to remember her by. We will be sharing some of her heartwarming, silly, personal, and quirky poetry for your enjoyment.
About these poems...
She wrote almost all of these when we were living on the ranch in Texas. A very hard time for my parents. I think my folks made a combined $100 a week between them and worked long hours. My dad was a ranch hand on my uncle’s ranch, and my mom was a housekeeper and cook for the home for disabled veterans they kept on the property. She will never win the Pulitzer, but she expressed her feelings very poignantly.
~ Michael Ray
Inspirations
By Carol Ray
For my family, with love
Upon my feet I have something new.
And to tell you about them is all I can do.
Cowboy boots are what I am wearing now.
And my husband is the one who can take the bow.
This land in Texas is hard on the feet.
And with clay, sand and mud, it’s not very neat,
To wear nothing but sandals everyday.
So I have found a very comfortable way
To keep out the dirt.
To step on thorns without getting hurt.
There’s only one problem I can seem to beat,
It takes two people to get these boots off my feet.
HAPPY HEART
The shimmering colors of the sun setting in the west,
Put some talented poets at their very best.
For me it’s quite a different thing,
That always sets my heart to sing.
When I hear it, my pen does wiggle;
For what I hear is a child’s giggle.
THE PRIZE
Tonight I am a Princess, or Queen of the Nile.
With eyelashes on, and my hair in a pile.
Rings upon my fingers, color in my cheeks.
And behind ears perfume softly speaks.
My dress is a beauty, though it’s ten years old today.
And I’m feeling quite lovely in every single way.
Yes, I look like a beauty contest winner.
And the prize is being alone with my husband for dinner.
PRECIOUS
More precious than gems, they can never be replaced.
Yet only on cardboard are they kept in cased.
We take them for granted as they get shuffled around.
And yet in safes of steel should they be found.
They speak loudly of memories from out of the past.
With care, our lives they will long outlast.
To our loved ones of the future, they will conquer time and space.
These precious items are the family pictures,
From that book we keep called the Photo Album.