Solstice
Stillness
A pause as the cold settles in
Vast expanses of white
Bare sentinel trees
Snow crunches beneath my feet
The warmth is missed
But the stillness is welcome
As I slow down … and breathe
Jennifer Rivas, Lyons
Poudre Valley REA member
Illusion
You are a winter day
When the temperature
Sinks below zero
But the sun is bright
And the sky
Burns so blue
That it turns black in photos
Deceptively warm
Unknowingly chilling your soul.
You are ice crystals
Condensing onto aspens
An illusion of overnight snow
Joining to branches
That sparkle and glitter
At the first hint of sun
Dazzling and wondrous
But so bright
You can’t quite see it
For what it is
And as soon as the sun
Hits full force
You melt away.
You are champagne powder
Soft and cushioning
Beneath my skis
A fleeting instance of joy
A moment of euphoria
But as I float
Through a swell of snow
Your substance disperses
The slightest touch
Sending all of your molecules
Scattering to the wind.
Valerie Powell, Steamboat Springs
Yampa Valley Electric member
The Old Grouch
Sparrows on my fence,
finches all around,
they’re searching for food
and scratching the ground.
I’m rather busy;
I’m reading the news;
don’t puff your feathers
or sing dreary blues.
I know it’s quite cold
but don’t bother me.
I’ll sit on the couch
and drink my hot tea.
The clouds are gloomy
and winds start to blow;
I grab a blanket
and watch embers glow.
Your eyes are piercing,
stop staring this way.
I’ll close the curtains
and sit here all day.
The weather is fierce;
the fence starts shaking;
Feathers are ruffled
and trees are quaking.
Ice is now forming;
I blast the heater;
I trudge through the snow
and fill the feeder.
Larry Madigan, Colorado Springs
Mountain View Electric member
The High Plains
Some say the plains
of this great land of ours
are quite simply boring
for unending hours.
But where else, I ask you,
is there to be found
such a grand display where silence abounds?
Where there is exceedingly
much to explore,
no boundaries to hold you,
no cobbled decor?
Where whispering winds
are the songs of the night
and spectacular sunsets
bring such delight?
And hidden beyond,
where one dare not breach,
are the creatures who scurry
to dash out of reach.
While the folks who have chosen
to make it their home
have proudly embraced
what they always have known.
Its splendor is grassland,
and wheat fields and more.
Its strength is derived
from those gone before.
Its essence, compelling,
though not what it seems.
For its promise is endless
to those who would dream.
Linda Rae Schaal, Burlington
K.C. Electric Association member