I was born, reared, and have spent the better part of my life in Ochiltree County, Texas. I wrote this song for a fundraiser I produced in 1996. It tells the story of someone who was raised in a dugout home on the plains of Texas, and after many years away, goes back to visit the old home
place.

Out in the middle of Ochiltree County,
There's a hand dug hole in the ground.
Rusty old horseshoes and worn out wagon wheels litter the grass all around.
Sod walls have crumbled and the roof has caved in, but you can still see the old wooden door
This once was a home for my family and me,
But it's nobody's home anymore.

In the early days of Ochiltree County
we started a hardscrabble ranch
on thousands of acres of Buffalo Grass
unmarked by a road or a fence.
We built our small house from mud and grass,
and a dirt floor was all that we had
We fought spiders and snakes in our little sod house,
But the good times far outweighed the bad.

Now sometimes we wander to that spot on the prairie
and remember all the good things we did.
the lovin', the fightin', the patience it took
to raise cattle and horses and kids.
And I'll have to admit I'd hate to go back
and live through all those hard times again,
but I wouldn't take all of Ochiltree County for the memories I have of back then.

Out in the middle of Ochiltree County,
there's a hand dug hole in the ground.
It once was a home for my family and me,
Now only Memories of Gold can be found,
Only Memories of Gold can be found.
Copyright 1996