Winners of the 2002 Margaret Mielke Poetry Awards

WINTER WALK
By Danielle Ackerman
Airport Heights, Grade 5

When all the geese glide south
Heading for their winter homes
And the birch trees go bare
Mislaying their coats of leaves
That’s when I’m positive
Winter’s here.
The crispy air hips at my nose
As the snowy popcorn balls
sprinkle
Down from the trees
Onto my shoulders.
I look towards the hills
Glimmering in crystals of frost.
Everything’s covered
In wavy blankets of snow.
I track many fat footprints
While wearing rosy red cheeks
And admiring the winter
wonderland.
Somebody must have outlined
These trees with a frosty white
crayon.

AUNT MARGARET
By Tiara Light
Airport Heights, Grade 5

I keep my sad memories of Aunt
Margaret
Deep inside my heart
Hidden and unexposed
My favorite aunt
Old and frail
Squinty beady eyes
Sagging cheeks
Curly white springy hair
Singing ancient Tlingit songs
In a high-pitched voice.
Dried fish and seaweed
on her kitchen table
A button blanket to keep her
Warm
Her body fingers sewing beads
Blue and pink flowers
Buds and blossoms on moccasins
appear.
Her much-loved awards
Hang upon her door.
Telling me traditions
Of returning fish bones to water
So there’ll be more fish to catch
next year.
A respected elder
I miss you so.

QUIET POEM By Nick Treinen Government Hill, Grade 4 A silent leopard stalks the wary gazelle The butterfly dances through the forest making no noise at all Schools of minnows, their tiny noses muffled by the water And quieter than all the rest, time flows through the air, unnoticed and unheard.

CHANGE
By Christine Walters
Baxter, Grade 6

The colors of decay
smothering the leaves
Like rust
on my uncle’s Volkswagen…
Wind tossing limbs to the ground,
spears of bark
penetrating frozen earth.

A blanket of frost covers my lawn
separates blades
once emerald with life
Final farewell
to last week’s soccer game
lawnmower stored away for now.

Shorts and tees
stuffed into drawers,
sweaters and sweats born again…
Closets cleared
to make room for more,
back to school sales soon in bloom.

No more snoozing in the sun
or sleeping way past noon…
The clatter of buzzers
waking the dead
the annoying call of,
“ARE YOU UP YET?!”

WAITING By Katy Dougherty Government Hill, Grade 4 Lives can be spent waiting Waiting for the words to come out of my mouth. Waiting for the spring flowers to bloom. Waiting, Waiting for today to end and tomorrow to begin. Waiting, for the sun to rise Waiting… for the time when I will stop waiting.

MEETING SADNESS
By Karista Josey
Airport Heights, Grade 5

I met Sadness
Its tears drowned me.
It danced with my feelings
Until I fell
Shaking me all up
Inside and outside
Mixing up emotions
Turning them into one beg tear
That slowly rolls down my cheek
When I met sadness
Its strength pulled me in
Tied me up
I couldn’t move
I struggled and struggled
To escape its ropes
But I couldn’t move.

“Stress is pale…”
By Haey Krone
Eagle River, Grade 4

Stress is pale
Like sweat running down your
face.
It’s the sound of thumping
underfoot and in your head.
Stress swims through your body
in waves of endless pain.
When it finds your heart-
it attacks.

TONIGHT I CAN WRITE THE SCARIEST LINES
By Kris Hillman
Baxter, Grade 6

Tonight I can write
the scariest lines
Hearing bullets of rain
pummel the ground
Exploding thunder Jagged lightning
Like war
screams
Tonight I can write
the scariest lines.

POET By Katy Chan Sand Lake, Grade 3 Bursting Bubbling Boiling Over With Poems Can’t Get Enough Poems Written Down More And More Going Down On paper Just as you Think You’re done A million Come to Your head.

“Terrorist attack …”
By Erliee Hjellen
Inlet View, Grade 3

Terrorist attack-
Vanished lives
Shattered buildings shuddered
Ripped with steely talons
Wails flickered
Everywhere.

   Winners of the 1999 Margaret Mielke Poetry Awards
                Winners of the 2000 Margaret Mielke Poetry Awards
                Winners of the 2001 Margaret Mielke Poetry Awards
                Winners of the 2003 Margaret Mielke Poetry Awards
                Winners of the 2004 Margaret Mielke Poetry Awards
                Winners of the 2005 Margaret Mielke Poetry Awards
                Winners of the 2006 Margaret Mielke Poetry Awards