God in a Manger

The butt of my staff is clicking nervously upon this path, my heart and mind are one with anticipation
I have seen a host of angels, and I am but a shepherd, should I proceed with trepidation
"Come,' they sang,'glory to God in the highest," we shall find a babe wrapped in humility, lying in obedience
Peace on earth and good will toward men, what sort of child could merit this experience
The star of David hanging like a crown, high above this little King, and I, a shepherd, witness to these things
A holy night, a mother glowing, what  have I fit to bring
To God as He lies in this manger, and yet above everything
What do I have that He has not given me, my house, my children, my wife
And so I give it back to Him, the maker of my life
Calvin  "Cheese Grits" Yerke

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Fire By Night

I thought I stepped out strong, on my own two feet
Like a warrior, I pictured myself not excepting defeat
Standing like a rock, when others would retreat

Off to battle I marched
What's this, you say, "the battle is over there my friend, you're heading the wrong way"
And so I turn to follow you, as you stare at clouds all day

As night falls thick around our feet, what will you follow now
But as the words move to my lips, the light is all around
When it stops, then so do we, that is where we camp
This is the chosen ground

How far are we from battle, Sir
"We are in it as we speak"
"If we don't win this part of it, then all is lost for good"
This is not the battle I enlisted for, nor do I think I would
There is nothing you can say right now, none of it makes sense

"Maybe you are not prepared, did you not understand the stakes"
Unprepared for what, this must be some mistake
I came for blood, and to give my own, I left fear in Goshen
But you would have me fight myself, I came for other men

"The battle is already under way, and I'm curious, will you win"
Where is the glory in this, I say, where shall I find my take
"What part of this belongs to you, where did you begin
Where does glory fit my friend, what did we ever make

- Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

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Soul Spelunking

At first I stumbled awkwardly through dark and cloudy streams
Underneath the mountain, searching for misplaced shiny things
And though I pretend to talk to you, I do not hear your words
Just sounds of muttering
My eyes have grown much larger now, and fill my aching head
Disproportionate, you say, but your as good as dead
Where did I put that blasted thing, my precious little ring
Too much light, you bring with you my eyes begin to sting
You need it though to comfort you, for your just passing through
But if I steal it from your hand, then what will you do
I shall make a law down here, no light will be allowed
Everything shall walk the same, covered by this shroud
Then you will wish for eyes like mine, as I hunt you through eternal night
That would seem quite fair to me, so much I hate your light

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

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Daddy Day Care

Scale Lily Steam Punk

If I had one of those wives who loved to shop, I would go with her as long as she was headed for the Altamonte Mall. I look around at some of the other men fishing at Crane's Roost and wonder, are they waiting out the time out here while their wives are trying on clothes inside? I had to drop Lily off at the fall festival for her school, and so I decided to to run up the street and take a few cast while I waited. I had a few Senkos left and thought it would be good to try them Wacky rigged since the weather had been changing, and since the fishing was a little more difficult there. This fall weather is beautiful and I managed two fish right off, hmm, maybe I should start a babysitting service for husbands. We could meet in the mall parking lot, and for ten dollars, your wife could leave you with me and I would provide you with a rod, some lures and the best invention for passing time. Pretty reasonable and I could invest the money back into the fishing economy. That would help keep my lures, hooks and line replenished and you could feel accomplished, that you had avoided a wasted afternoon of shopping in a place that did not start or begin with the words bait and tackle. Ah, but alas, a lovely dream.

Crane's Roost largemouth

I don't always shop when I go to the Altamonte mall but when I do, I wish I was doing this instead

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Embark

What are you asking me to do? This is all I know
I am comfortable with this, but you're telling me to go
It's not that here is better, but it is to here that I was born
And so I pack with trepidation, and a spirit deeply torn
But one can't see the Promised Land while standing on the Nile
So I must walk and carry this, if only for a while

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

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The Bug

Cheese Grits at Lake Destiny on a Craw

From the west and partly cloudy, and so I cannot go to work today
I'm coming down with something, and there's no cure, they say
This bug must run its course, through snot and matted weed
It cannot be ignored, it is the type of  cold that you must feed
And so I pull this frog from throat, and hook it onto line
As you're passing by me, you say I look just fine
But no, that's not the case at all, these things can be deceiving
On the outside I am smiling, but inside I am grieving
Which spot will be the best today, to cleanse my hurting soul
I cannot walk there fast enough, the fever takes control
Autumn's disease has stricken me, but no one seems to care
My request for disability was met with empty stares
The world is cold and cruel my friends, so thank God for rod and reel
Because not everyone knows how to fish, so they've forgotten how to feel

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

Crane's Roost Bass

Lake Destiny on top water

Catfish in Kissimee

Lake Destiny on Culprit Gumbo

Lake Destiny on Zoom Toad

Large mouth bass at night

Lily and the Bass

Drew and a hard earned gar

Spade fish in St. Pete

Bull head catfish

Drew kissing a Blue gill in Clermont

Tilapia

Large mouth bass in Clermont

Wading the grass with Lily at John's Lake

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Sticky situation

This is only the second day, and my thoughts have gone up in pillars
Disconnected, contorted, my skin is crawling
My face feels like I should be able to touch it, three inches from where it usually sits
And I ask God for help with this; I don't want this to own me
I do not want to be mean to anyone, its blurry
How does one account for all these empty spaces in the day
But I said I would do this, so I threw the smoke away

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

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Cloud Huggers

I'd rather come to you with feet, holding up a dove
Prepared to talk about the state of things in love
But I hear you're eating everything and calling it progress
So now it is your thirst for blood, that first we must address
I plead with you to turn around, and now I plead with God
On your behalf, I beg His grace and would gladly walk away
But I can't make that deal with you, I don't believe a word you say
If it were just me then I could dress most gladly like the fool
But you're attacking everyone, from high upon your stool
From lofty places in your mind where really you don't stand
You justify the acts they fear, your faith is force of hand
You're blind and lost just like I was, and if ever you truly see
It was not from the words I said, it was not because of me
The clouds are building rapidly; you would not recognize the afternoon
Darkness has touched everything and is reaching out for you
You smile at its cunning and are quick to hold its hand
But now you're going to learn what you refused to understand
I told you at those heights, there's no air for you to breathe
The sun was just behind the cloud, but the cloud's what you believed

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

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Hi

Its not based on a high, though those feelings derived
From the time you were made alive
Don't base it upon the road to Damascus
Or your troubles when they ask us
That was only in the beginning and the cry you thought inside
Was going on worldwide
But how much longer could we hide
I was shaken by the letter, but moved by the Spirit
Those words, when finally you hear it
And lift up every part of me to understand
The eternal feelings of Your hand

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

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Landing

Narrow Mouth Toad

I stole the line, "meekness is not weakness; it is power under control
But the consequence of words is, they can be born without a soul
Without the wings of meaning or the heart to understand
The words that might take off, find no place to land

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

Lunar moth

Fly; I thought perhaps a deer fly but could not find a sure identification

Those doves with red under the wing

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Interpretation

Dove -Captured by water

I fell from not, I know not where, caught up in my despair
So let it go, to help my friend, and not hold captive, my ability to care
Though I in innocence did end up, I hope it ends not here
For actions other than my own, God, Your reason stays unclear
So let this cup pass from me, as You gently lift his head
Or do the birds come back for me, and eat up all the bread

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

Fenced in but free turkey

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In the Telling

Its not so open to interpretation, the things I choose to write about
So I write with trepidation, and struggling with doubt
Did my words retain the spirit or get lost inside the letter
Was I suppose to say this or could I explain it better
More comfortable with prose, I don unfamiliar clothes
Because introspection is the way I chose
I chase the author, and suspect to find Him soon
Is that His shadow there, standing in the ruins
It was fine the way it was, so what's left for me to share
So I choose my words more carefully, the ones I even dare
But there is something in the telling that is chipping at my heart
And oh my God, You're everywhere, You've been there from the start

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

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Jacob

Vulture

For my brother some beans, that now I wish I would have given to him for free
I thought I bought my way, but it was never so much of me as in spite of me
And you could at any time have finished what you started, but I did not know what that was
You won't tell me your name, but I know you as Because
My life has been marked by struggles yet you have struggled with me too
So you allow, but never leave and now I should wish to be so true
I buried all my crumbling vanities, beneath the Terebinth tree
My hope has moved now, to the God who answers me

Calvin "Cheese Grits" Yerke

Cotton tail rabbit

Fire works

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Who am I

As the deer panteth for the water, so my soul length after thee

You alone are my heart's desire, and I long to worship thee

How did He walk in light of this

How can I be arrogant, but only in spite of this

Deliver me of this

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