Young Writers Project Winter Tales

About the Project

Young Writers Project is an independent nonprofit based in Burlington that engages students to write, helps them improve and connects them with authentic audiences in newspapers, before live audiences and on web sites. Young Writers Project also publishes a monthly digital magazine, The Voice. YWP is supported by this newspaper and foundations, businesses and individuals who recognize the power and value of writing. Contact us: Young Writers Project, 47 Maple St., Suite 106, Burlington, VT 05401. Email: sreid@youngwritersproject.org; (802) 324-9539.

The following stories submitted to Young Writers Project by local writers were selected from dozens of submissions to be presented by the Vermont Stage Company at FlynnSpace in Burlington. Go to vtstage.org/winter-tales for more information and tickets.

Winter 

By Oliver Halberg, Age 14, Shelburne

Winter

day

The sun shines from behind the clouds

turning the deep layer of snow that covers the ground

into a mesmerizing scene of rainbow colors

too bright to look at

The frigid wind blows the clouds away

drifting across the bright blue sky

the sort of blue only seen on those especially perfect winter days

A single brown leaf

seems to float on a patch of blindingly white snow

like a boat on a frozen, stormy sea

A tree stands upright

bare branches covered with snow

silhouetted against the blue

a nearly perfect winter scene

A cardinal, flying into view, completes the picture

as he lands on the top of the tree

on the highest branch

a speck of red, surrounded by white, with a backdrop of blue

The wind blows again as the bird takes off

and flies away

Evening

Red

Orange

Yellow

Pink

Sunset-colored snow

The distant sphere sinks behind purple-tinted mountains

casting colors and shadows across the wide expanse of snow

acting as a canvas for a natural painting

of light and shadow

a bridge between the separate yet joined realms

of day and night

of shadow and light

a bridge, existing for a short time each day

The sun sinks lower

The shadows stretch

longer and longer

until all is dark

The sun is gone

Night

Darkness

Shadow

Silver sparkles, twinkle overhead on a big black cloth

thrown over the sky for the night

The tree is still there, but the cardinal is gone

A darker scene exists now

Owls hoot, making small creatures, hidden under the snow, shiver in fear

Everything is still

and quiet

Clouds drift in, covering the sky with yet another layer

obscuring the stars

A few flakes of snow drift down

landing inaudibly on the shadowed white expanse

and disappearing

invisible

unnoticeable

a few flakes in a vast, deep expanse

The moon’s light shines through a hole in the clouds

turning the white carpet silvery

making the individual snowflakes glitter and gleam

as more and more come tumbling down

Imperceptibly, the white carpet grows taller

and taller

inching up the trunk of the tree

turning the brown to white

erasing the lines and crevices of the bark

Faster and faster, more snowflakes tumble down

down, down, down

More and more of them land on a single thin branch at the top of the tree

until a large clump of snow is perched precariously on a thin twig

and then it slides off, hitting the ground with a slight thump

creating a depression that is quickly filled by the storm

which has now become a blizzard

White curtains drift downwards, settling on the ground

The white is everywhere

It blots out the stars, the moon, the tree

until all that is left is the white

Dawn

When the storm drifts away, hours later, the landscape is changed

The piles of white snow now are twice as deep as they were before

All is silent and still

Slowly, in tiny increments,

the sky grows lighter

and lighter

A few birds start to sing

The first rays of sunlight strike the snow

as the light hits each crystal

The snow comes alive with tiny sparkles of flame

The sun rises over the treetops

More birds join in

nature’s morning melody

Early morning

white, fluffy clouds

drifting across

blue sky

The tree

brown branches

white snow

One thing is missing

Off in a distant corner of the sky

a speck of red flies into view

fluttering closer and closer

The cardinal swoops and soars

He circles the tree

and lands back in his favorite perch on the very top of the tree

Red

White

and

Blue

A tree

Snow

A cardinal

Blue sky

White clouds

Winter

A Winter Friend 

By Mackenzie Marcus, Age 12, Shelburne 

I look high up from the tallest pine tree. I look down below all the way to the ground and only see snow. I keep looking from the top of the pine tree. There! I see a girl come out of the cottage. She is short and has a bright blue hat. I watch her. She walks out to a snow mound. It looks like she is building something, but what? I watch her as she rolls a big snow circle. A snowman! She is making a snowman!

After a while she seems to wander off to the back of the cottage. As curious as I am I want to see what she is up to. I climb down the tree cautiously and hit the ground with a thump. I try to stay hidden as I approach the cottage.

I peek around the corner and see her. She is sledding down the hill on a cherry red sled. As she approaches the bottom she falls off the sled. Ouch, I think. Then I take a closer look. She is laughing and appears to be doing something in the snow. A snow angel. She seems like a snow angel.

I watch her stand up. Then I see she has noticed me. She starts bolting up the hill. I don’t know what to do. So I stand still and act like she didn’t see me. She comes over and just stands in front of me. I’m a little taller than her, but I think we’re about the same age. Then she smiles at me. I smile back at her. I think I have found a friend.