The Gunslinger

I’m a gunslinger

it ain’t plain to see,

but don’t be afraid

there’s no reason to be.

My aim is straight

a real killer true,

just keep prayin

my target ain’t you.

Most look at me

an they just shy away,

and never a one

has dared to stay.

I should go down

in those history books,

as the man who won

but seldom earned looks.

I’ve searched for the worthy

both far and wide,

to be my equal

to ride at my side.

The kills are there

so very plain to see,

but the totals don’t match

but they show on me.

The true gunslinger

walks with a gait,

always on the alert

still tempting fate.

With a life like this

no wonder I’m alone,

so much damage

so very little shone.

Proof of my kills

don’t show many notches,

alas there’s only one

shadowed with blotches.

But wait you say

how can it be,

not a gunslinger

surely not me.

With only one notch

I have little to show,

such a weak claim

what’s there to know.

Lets look again

how can that be,

the kills were real

but they were always me.

When I go out

I’m not looking for a fight,

in search of some love

and so seldom in sight.

My search the same

always from the start,

not looking to harm

but to capture a heart.

I never wanted

a gunslinger to be,

a lover not a fighter

so what’s wrong with me.

What you can’t know

though my kills are real,

at the end of the trail

only emptiness I feel.

So many times

a broken heart scattered,

but not of others

it’s mine that’s shattered.

So if you see me approach

there’s no reason to flee,

because the broken heart

is always within me.

No need to rush

please don’t scurry,

with so many kills

there’s only one to bury.

I’m a gunslinger

it ain’t plain to see,

but don’t be afraid

there’s no reason to be.

Gary R. Cramer

November 16, 2014