The clouds were parked in the sky
Like ships in the doldrums
The clouds rested
They were parked vehicles of change
Cargoes of moisture and shade
Their anger had disappeared
They were light and lofty
No drift or unrest
Just floating
Awaiting their behest*.
-Kelly Voelker
*behest - orders
The quietness contends with patterns now broken
The feeling persists, is felt but not spoken
My purpose in neutral, scatters my focus
I will separate my thoughts and ambitions
Far enough apart to allow superstitions
Their rightful place among daily endeavors
Waiting to show me I'm idle, but clever.
-Kelly Voelker
How are people both irreplaceable and insignificant?
How is life both fragile and resilient?
Does perfect health require assistance or does innate orchestration manage it all?
How can the body choose to die without the permission of the mind?
How do some people evade odds and probable outcomes?
Is being “normal” healthy or deadly?
Is doing something differently, weird or genius?
Is consistency the secret for maintaining a tolerable long life?
Does a wayward lifestyle play too many notes at once for the body and mind to flourish?
Tell me, what are the attributes most congruent to a lifespan which provides satisfaction and contentment?
Being as one with the body through life is most akin to good horsemanship.
Talk to oneself in a calm and reassuring way.
Not too rich a diet, sustainable boundaries with enough range to keep the spirit alive and in wonder.
Trust your body and your body will trust you. Don’t let others lead your body or mind astray.
The trail of life is a compromise between freedom and sustainable stability.
The horse and rider cooperate to "get the job done" or to simply enjoy the scenery.
They allow each other unproductive browsing when left to themselves.
-Kelly Voelker
The repetition of soft little feet
From rabbits patrolling the fenceline in Spring
Before colors green emerge in the field
Tentatively touching the same little path
Small meandering trails from their entrance
To tall brown dry grass over which
Snow never visited
Shunning the ground as the wind made harsh
The rest of the field our rabbits avoided
Nestling under the large strong spruce fortress
Last year's dry grass agreed to stay 'round
Escorting the rabbits until warmth can be found.
-Kelly Voelker
They cut through the rows
Of the cornfield in front
They ran past the mailbox
Leapt over the fence
They ignored the light poles, borders and went
Like ghosts from the wild past
Disregarding our ways
The four deer will always
Transcend and amaze.
-Kelly Voelker
In the autumn of life
I dreamed all night
Of being drunk with love
Together we stumbled
From one restaurant to another
Tasting food and drinks
Adding alcohol to the mix
Adding fuel to the fire
Of what is natural desire
Who or what is reminding me
Of that feeling of romantic love so free?
Who or what was that
Like a flammable fuel
From somewhere new
Or what can make one run
In heels and just for fun?
Why now as winter rages
Would I dream this dream not faded
Even as I write to save it?
So, what's next?
As the story is done
We've turned all the pages
And processed the fun,
The entanglements freed
The intentions were good
The misguided actions dismissed
Knock on wood
So what lies ahead
After shedding our skin
Who is this creature
Now loose and prepared
For anything new
Just a little bit scared.
-Kelly Voelker
What fills me with love and adoration about those in my life, is not what they look like or anything grand.
It's the way they fold clothes or the grace of their hands.
It is their manner of movement when looking away and alone, doing the things they don't think about shown.
It's their phrases that came out without much thought and habits which pointed towards order and home.
The way they prepare for their bed and their days, the way they make food and direct their dismay.
Some is contrived towards living a good life. Some is a natural response all unique that makes them my favorite people I think.
-Kelly Voelker
The tufts of summer's foliage
Add depth to the shallow innocence
Of a temporary snow soon fleeting
As the blush of the dawn heats
Past Venus and melting streets
There and then will reality set in
As fun or dreary as I decide to elongate
The fair truth of any moment as this one waits
For me to decide how deep will
Joy trickle before it's stopped by
The icicles of yesterday's beauty
And the perceived bleakness
Of today's emotional weakness.
-Kelly Voelker
The village I left
Again and again
This time the last
I know as a fact
There are no more reasons
For ever coming back
There's nothing left to write
Nothing left to observe
No one to visit
Nowhere to splurge.
-Kelly Voelker
A bright and cool autumn morn
Is leaving me feeling forlorn
Even as the obvious beauty of the day
Promises the best for work or play
I remember working with my father
Feeling how far from this I've come
I don't know what I'm becoming
As my guidance is unseen
But each intricate skill and task
I've dreamed of and now mostly done
Leaves a feeling of satisfaction
In its familiar yet totally foreign spin
On the person others 'round here know
Who is but a shell I will outgrow
I want to put myself where
There are no memories which
Constantly want to shape
The growth I have enjoyed to date.
-Kelly Voelker
