The Fence That Me And Shorty Built

We'd picked up all the fencin' tools and staples off the road,
An extra roll of bob-wire was the last thing left to load.
I drew a sleeve across my face to wipe away the dirt;
The young man who was helpin' me was tuckin' in his shirt.

I turned around to him and said, "the fence is finally done.
Five new strands of bob-wire shinin' proudly in the sun.
The wire runnin' straight and tight with every post in line,
The kind of job your're proud of, one that stands the test of time."

Well the kid was not impressed at all, just stared off into space,
and it reminded me of years ago, another time and place
when I called myself a cowboy, I was full of buck and ball,
And I didn't think my hands would fit post augers and a maul.

But they sent me out with Shorty and the ranch fence buildin' crew.
Well I was quite insulted and before the day was through
I let him know that "I'm a cowboy, this ain't what I do.
I ain't no dad-gummed nester, I hared out to buckaroo."

He said, "We'll talk about that son when we get in tonight.
Right now, you pick up that augers up; It's either that or fight."
Boy I was diggin' post holes faster than a Georgia mole
But if a rock got in my way, I simply moved the hole.

So when the cowboys set the posts, the line went in and out
Old Shorty's face got fiery red and I can hear him shout,
"Nobody but a fool would build a fence that isn't straight.
I've got no use for someone who ain't pulling his own weight."

I thought for sure he'd hit me, glad he didn't have a gun.
I turned around to find a place where I could duck and run
But Shorty just walked up to me, as calm as he could be.
He said, "Son I need to talk to you; Let's find ourselves a tree."

Well, he rolled a Bull Durham cigarette as we sat upon the ground,
Took himself a puff or two, then slowly looked around.
"Son, I ain't much on schoolin', didn't get too far with that.
But there's a lot of learnin' hidden underneath this hat."

"And I've got'er all the hard way, every bump and bruise and fall,
Some of it was easy, but most weren't fun at all.
But one thing that I always got from every job I've done
Is do the best I can each day and try to make it fun."

"Now I know that bustin' through them rocks ain't what you like to do
But gettin' mad, you've made it though on me and all the crew.
Now you hired out to cowboy and you think you've got the stuff
You told him you're a good hand and the boss has called you bluff."

"So how's that gonna make you look when he comes ridin' through
And he asks me who dug the holes and I say it was you.
Now we could let it go like this, take the easy route.
But doin' things the easy way ain't what its all about."

"The boss expects a job well done from every man he's hired.
He'll let you slide by one or twice, then one day you'll be fired.
If you're not proud of what you do you won't amount to much.
You'll bounce around from job to job, just slightly out of touch."

"Come morning, lets re-dig those holes and get that fence in line,
And you and I will save two jobs, those bein' yours and mine.
And some day you'll come ridin' through and look across this land
And see a fence that's laid out straight and know you had a hand
In something that's withstood the years;
Then proud and free of guilt,
You'll smile and say, "Boys, there's the fence that me and Shorty built."

As told by Red Steagall

Anything worth doing is worth doing right. What ever business that you are in. It is worth doing it right the first time. Sometimes you do not get a second chance to do it right. What kind of reputation do you want when doing your business. One where people say "they give a good product for a good price." Or " they give a bad product for a high price."

Dan and Deanna "Marketing Unscrambled"