Beyond Words

Stehekin Heritage

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A too dark scan of Beyond Word's cover. 

Beyond Words was first published in 1987. At the time, valley residents were asked to answer the question, "What it is like to live in Stehekin?" Each piece of writing is unique offering heartwarming  thoughts concerning the value of knowing the Stehekin Valley as home.   

Our intention is to publish one piece of writing  from Beyond Words each week. The first installment sets the stage as an "Introduction" to - Beyond Words.

Introduction

            People who live in Stehekin are often asked, “What is it like, to live here?” There is no simple answer to this question; however, we feel a need to respond.

            Capturing the essence of valley life is not easy. The individuality of our answers demonstrates the diversity of personalities that reside and interact here, but the common denominator for all of us is that we love and hold special our experiences here in Stehekin.

            Many of us living in the Stehekin valley have attempted to put down on paper some of our feelings about our home. These writings are printed in our words so that you may hear our individual voices as they join together. These pieces are offered without the names of the authors attached so that the fullness of the community spirit may be heard. We are happy to offer these visions of our community to you in the hope that they might provide you with a deeper understanding of life in this small community.

            The children’s writing you will find interspersed within this booklet offers another view of life in the Stehekin valley. The children wanted to take part in this project and have done so by submitting a few of their journal entries for publication. Their refreshing observations offer insight unavailable from any adult point of view.

            Every contributor knows that living in Stehekin is full of experiences that are more intimate and intense than the written word can express. As one participant succinctly stated in the early stages of this project, “When I try to think of what to say about life in Stehekin, I just think that… well, it’s just… Beyond Words!”