There's a whole new year waiting to happen out there. Of the infinitely many things that could happen, what would you just as soon skip? Write sentences that begin, "I will skip..." Imagine your ideal self in a perfect year and announce the many things you will decline. When will you close your eyes, cover your ears, or plug your nose? What will you turn away from? What … [Read more...] about Skip Into the New Year
What Lights Your Way?
Today, in the northern season of minimal sunlight, write about light and how useful it is. In a literal sense, light helps us move our physical bodies past obstacles without getting hurt. Light eliminates the problems that darkness creates. We speak and think of light figuratively, too. The light inside a person's mind, heart, or self. How does this kind of light show the … [Read more...] about What Lights Your Way?
Month by Month
Memory is disorderly, but a calendar is not. Sometimes you can trick unexpected insights from your mind by mapping your disorderly memory onto an orderly calendar. Divide the page into 12 roughly equal sections, each labeled with a month of the year. Scan your memories of the previous year and try to connect the memories with a specific month. When an event occurred. When a … [Read more...] about Month by Month
Just Jars
Write about jars. A jar that's in front of you. One you remember or invent. What are the most prominent jars in your life story? Or write about the contents of jars. What is in them and what is not. How are they labeled? Think about jars metaphorically. Jars of affection. Jars of time. Jars of forgotten events. What would you like to find in a jar? What would you like … [Read more...] about Just Jars
A List, Plus …
Find a place to write where there is some kind of scene or situation in front of you. Along the left-hand side of the page, write down words that describe what you are taking in from your surroundings. What words evoke what you see, hear, taste, smell and feel on your skin? Make a list that runs the length of the page. Reread it. Draw a line that separates the list from … [Read more...] about A List, Plus …