Higher than I

By Ada A. Ohnezeit

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He who forms the mountains, creates the wind, turns dawn to darkness, and treads on the heights of the earth, the Lord God Almighty is His name. – Amos 4:13

The flatlands spread for miles on end
With naught to mark the view;
On sun-bright days, the eye can see
Things miles away from you.

But rolling plains now offer 
New variety to eye, 
Gentle mounds and shallow valleys 
Where prairie grass waves high,

We've come upon the foothills
E'er the mountains start their rise, 
The breeze is fresh and cooling
As through a stand of pine it sighs.

Yet, look ahead, a steeper slope 
Still, easy to ascend, 
We now find the scene around us
Has become a varied blend

Of rocks, crags, higher summits
Which surround us, looming proud,
No longer easy foothills
Jagged peaks to spear a cloud.

What is it about mountains
That's a challenge to the soul? 
An all-consuming fever
Makes their peaks our urgent goal

As though we must defeat them
As they strive to touch a star 
In their vastness, overwhelming;
Insignificant we are.

So when God made the flatlands,
Prairies and the rolling plain,
He fashioned them for cozy homes
And fields of ripening grain.
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Then he formed majestic mountains
So that we could lift our eyes
To their breathless heights of being
Just below where heaven lies.

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Ada Anne Ohnezeit, born in 1925, is a lifelong resident of Western Pennsylvania and has been reading and writing poetry since her youth. Throughout her life, Ada has written many short, humourous verses for friends and family and longer compositions about life, death, family, faith, nature and holidays. These works have been enjoyed only by loved ones of all ages and the church community, as she has never submitted her work for publication until now in her 99th year. These works submitted were chosen out of 64 currently ready for review.

Ada has recently filmed two volumes of her poetry for her church and has been travelling to other local churches to read. She is currently writing and revising work to prepare for a third. Ada’s recorded works can be found here.