Poetry and Prose on the Prairie: A Nature Journal of Prophetstown State Park

by Charity Singleton Craig

What about this land made it so enticing for so many willing to fight for it? At the confluence of the Wabash and Tippecanoe Rivers, Prophetstown certainly offered access to waterways. But it also boasted a diverse landscape of edible and medicinal plants, as well as the birds and animals that found their habitat there. The rich soil also proved fertile for planting crops, and when the prairie plants dried up, creating a thick, tangled mat, fire (either from lightning or from controlled burns) released nutrients into the soil and controlled the landscape for hunting.The land and its ecosystem are different now, after decades of mechanical farming, tile draining, and receding rivers. But the land is also the same, with a more complicated story now. The land has been ravaged and cared for; it's seen flooding and drought. It's known the sharp cutting of plow and disk, as well as the gentle nurturing of hand-planted grasses and wildflowers. Fire still serves the land, primarily with controlled burns, and mostly, the land continues to produce good things for the world, good things you can see for yourself when you come. Let Poetry and Prose on the Prairie be your guide.

106 pages, Paperback

Published August 28, 2019

About the author

Charity Singleton Craig is the author of The Art of the Essay: From Ordinary Life to Extraordinary Words and coauthor of On Being a Writer: 12 Simple Habits for a Writing Life That Lasts. She is a two-time recipient of the Arts in the Parks and Historic Sites Grant from the Indiana Arts Commission and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, to write about the state parks and present writing programs to park visitors. She also has written for several magazines and journals, including Joyful Life Magazine, Awake our Hearts Journal, Edible Indy, In Touch Ministries, Redbud Post, InCourage, Christianity Today, The High Calling, The Curator, The Perennial Gen, Discipleship Journal, Tweetspeak Poetry, The Write Life, Grubstreet Daily, and others. After more than a decade as a freelance writer, Charity now works full-time as a writer in the marketing department of her local library while pursuing her master’s degree in library and information science from Indiana University-Indianapolis. In addition to her work for the library, Charity continues to write about art, nature, books, and faith. She lives with her husband in central Indiana and they enjoy spending as much time as possible with their three young adult sons. You can find her online at charitysingletoncraig.com.

Reviews

[Chele Denney · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sweet little account of the author’s experience at Prophetstown State Park. Her time in nature in general and the benefits of such are clearly felt in her writing. Now I need to go visit too 😃