Sights and sounds of winner

With a preliminary written test out of the way yesterday, the first two rounds of the Scripps National Spelling Bee take place today in Washington, D.C.

All of North Idaho will be rooting for 14-year-old Tricia McCullough.

You're probably aware that Tricia won the North Idaho Regional Spelling Bee at North Idaho College earlier this spring. You might already know that, during an interview last week, Tricia admitted to The Press that she's "nervous, excited and scared." But here's something you might not know: Tricia is a published poet.

We were reminded of that fact because on Memorial Day, Tricia's dad, David, was asked by Bee broadcast giant ESPN if he had a copy of a poem Tricia wrote in 2009 and shared with readers of The Press on Christmas Day. ESPN wanted to interview Tricia and, as part of the interview, have her read her poem.

We don't know if David was able to retrieve the poem in time or if ESPN conducted or will air the interview, but we thought we'd share with you the words penned by a little girl who was a fifth-grader at Dalton Elementary at the time:

Sights and sounds of winter

By Tricia McCullough

Whisper, whisper,

Hear the wind,

Blowing on a cold winter day.

Shiver, shiver,

See the children,

Bundled up, yet still cold,

Playing in their childish way.

Crackle, crackle,

Hear the fire,

In the fireplace,

The blazing flames reflecting,

On your eyes and on your face.

Smiling faces, smiling faces,

On everyone's face you see,

Always happy because of the Christmas joy and glee.

These are the sights and sounds of winter,

They really are quite swell,

So, after hearing this,

As you walk around today,

Look and listen more to the sights and sounds of winter,

Which you'll notice quite well,

Are not too far away.

Hear the cheers from far away, Tricia McCullough. No matter how you do in this pressure-packed competition, a warm sea of smiling faces awaits your return.

* Watch today's National Spelling Bee on espn3.com