Local poet and High Prairie resident, Rebecca Sonniksen, who has shared some of her poems in previous issues of The High Prairian, was recently recognized for her poetry. One of her poems was featured in the April 9, 2022, edition of Columbia Community Connection News (CCC News) in their weekly column, “Local Poetry Spotlight.”(https://columbiacommunityconnection.com/the-dalles/local-poetry-spotlight-rebecca-sonniksen) Rebecca writes that the poem was inspired by her 8-year-old granddaughter, Sofia.
HOW EASILY
Rebecca Sonniksen
I break off
from the embrace of being-
eight years old, flinging rocks from a railroad trestle
to hear the splash.
Break off-
from imagining morning frost
changing driveway gravel to a glistening
river of diamonds.
From cracking ice fragments
clinging to grassy winter remnants,
framing a multitude of miniature grasses,
flowing time suspends.
Bend close to absorb the transparency
of vanishing coldness-
Capture the marvel of an unexpected melt,
in the unexpected warmth of a winter day.
Hold it in your hands, it melts.
It’s only ice, after all.
Rebecca’s granddaughter, Sofia
HIGH PRAIRIE SING ALONG SONG
Audrey Bentz
To the melody, “When It’s Springtime in the Rockies”
When it’s Springtime on High Prairie
And the birds begin to sing
Oh, we thrill to hear the meadowlark,
See the bluebird on the wing.
The wild flowers start their bloomin’
There is color everywhere.
When it’s Springtime on High Prairie
This land is oh, so rare!
When it’s Springtime on High Prairie
Sure the wind can surely blow,
that the summer comes, we know.
The balsam root and camas, grass
widows, lupine too!
When it’s Springtime on High Prairie
Our hearts ring with joy anew!