Nikolas Stott is halfway through his first year at Bellevue College with hopes of pursuing a creative career in the future. Below we showcase his poetry piece “Snow Song” followed by a brief interview with Stott.
“Snow Song”
A few minutes into the climb the snow began to fall. This wasn't the fun it sounds. A bird sat atop my head and made a cushion out of my hat. It sang of wonder and whimsy as marvelous notes left its beak. If music were to be met with magic this would be the product. With one last note it left me an unwanted gift and merged with the vast pale ether ahead. Company's a smaller thing on a mountain. The company that swells with warmth and coddles the soul with a supernova of inmost light. Where towers of sweltering dark seek to consume the beating flesh that lays buried beneath a labyrinth of creaking bones. I was swallowed by the blinding ether. Catching a glimpse of the dancing songbird my feet weakly swayed. Through the cosmic array of swirling tones; pulling and pulling onward. Until the bone-white veil dissolved the world around me and I found myself across the great barrier to be met with a beaming ray of hope, a lantern clawing its way through the storm. To what, exactly–? The melody that we sing is sung back. Villages that rise, camps that capture that light deep within ourselves. Or hope, an odd feeling in the tides of terror. Upon the mound of stars I thought I could see the universe. Liked the lie of this and closed my eyes as firelight licked at my face. We brought our demons with us, their secrets, their desires. But the kid who once whistled a song in the snow joined the joyful choir, and let the flames erupt inside him, taking over. Until something new was created from nothing and smiled as they composed a blazing and brilliant song of snow.
“Snow Song is about someone climbing a snowy mountain in search of something. It is mostly left to interpretation. I chose this poem in particular because I believe it showcases my skills as a writer as well as how far I have come just in the past few weeks,” Stott explained.
When asked why Stott likes poetry, he said “Poetry is amazing to me because anyone can pick up a pen and put their heart into just a few lines. I’ve always been more interested in short literature like short stories, myths and poetry because they are concise and straightforward, while also allowing the reader to understand it in their own unique way due to the ability to be very vague in the writing process.”
Stott describes himself as “an easy-going guy who loves to laze around with my cat, go on runs, work outside and write. For as long as I can remember, I have always been writing short stories or thinking up imaginary worlds and characters. It wasn’t until late into high school when I realized I really wanted to do something with world-building, or anything creative as a career really.”
For more inspiring works of art, you can find the rest of the poetry profile series linked here.
