VIEWS from the SADDLE

About the Book

Natalie Ridener ~ The Poetry Café of Kingsville, TX

This book we have just edited, Stories Around the Campfire will be Book #3 in a series of Views from the Saddle a Texas cowboy’s life in poetry, by Ray A. Twist.

As a plus are: Mr.Twist’s short stories, that one can imagine, being read around a campfire, with Randy, Rusty, Lefty, and Slim.

Goldia Hubert ~ Riviera, TX retired school teacher

What a marvelous gift Ray has for expressing his thoughts. His love of family, nature, patriotism, are written with clarity and simplicity of expression, that is truly inspirational.

He writes with an appreciation of character, honor, hard work, and duty-the kind of virtues, to which we aspire, for our children and grandchildren.

About the Author

Married 64 years to Annie Twist, who was the love of his life; Annie saw her last sunset in March of 2011. She compiled his poems into typed manuscripts with high hopes that he would have them published. She expressed this as one of her last wishes to him.

Ray was born in 1921, and is an Army WWII veteran, who was in charge of a tank command in the 1St Armored Division. Some of his poetry reflects the many emotions and feelings brought on by a war. In the military he enjoyed long distance running and boxing , in his free time.

He was a farm hand early in his life, picking cotton, working cattle and horses. In that, he is very knowledgeable. Ray owned a ranch next to the King Ranch for many years, later selling his herd to them. Included were Santa Gertrudis and Brahma cattle. He retired from Celanese in 1984, receiving praise and honorable mention, for his work ethics in instrumentation and automation.

Ray A. Twist was also a member of The Texas Calvary, at age 17, which disbanded at the start of WWII. Currently he still writes poetry and is in good health. He plans to live a long life, as his Cherokee father, and Irish mother did.

Natalie Ridener, is a poet and creator of The Poetry Café. She recognized good poetry in Ray Twist’s work and had been an agent to help him get published. “Simply put and understandable by everyone,” is her description of his cowboy poetry. Ray gives us an insight into a long life, in a direct and sometimes humorous way. Being older is not as bad as some might think, in Ray’s eyes. He remains “young at heart, and loves his faithful dog, Rocky.