MYLER BIT
Harold Roy Miller

I am a cowboy poet and western songwriter.
My sweet wife Diana is a reluctant reciter.
I can usually coax her to get up on stage
but it always costs me some kind of wage.

An inexpensive gift is the agreed-upon norm
and then she'll cowgirl up and perform.
She tends to pick some kind of bling
like a western vest or a turquoise ring.

We had an engagement at the Gilded Spur
and I wrote a brand new poem for her.
I told her she needed some practice time
to capture the poem's meter and rhyme.

I asked her what token gift she required
or was there something special she desired.
She stated "For this poem, I want a Myler bit
or else I won't recite a word of it."

I was taken aback by this request
and I said, "What? Honey, surely you jest!
I know perfectly well it goes against your grain
to use any implement that may cause pain."

I protested, "This could make a horse's mouth sore,
so how about a sidepull or a soft hackamore?"
But she stood firm and was totally undaunted.
A Myler snaffle bit was what she wanted.

She explained. "The Myler comfort bit is made
with a sweet iron mouthpiece that is copper inlaid.
And this D-ring I want has independent side action,"
she stated, with obvious horse knowledge satisfaction.

When she smiled at me with that Cheshire grin,
I knew I was the one who would have to give in.
My course of action became perfectly clear.
if I was to further my poetry writing career.

So I went to the computer and got on line
searching for a bit for this stubborn gal of mine.
When she gets her mind set, I know she will not quit
until she possesses that Myler snaffle bit.

©Harold Miller, 2006