7 + 5 on Friday
This week, I have thoughts on Education and Creativity, The Hard Work of Originality, Creative Nonfiction, Journaling, National Poetry Month, Good Friday, Easter, and 5 Writing Prompts.
Earlier this week, I read:
I have been a teacher for a few decades and whether I have taught in the public schools as a substitute or in a private homeschool cooperative setting, I’ve seen success-driven modules grown in popularity among teachers and parents, but the problem is, some of these programs take away students’ ability to solve problems and creatively use their own voices.
I understand the desire for student success; I have two daughters, and I wanted them to succeed academically, but I also hoped they would be able to problem solve, think critically, and enjoy creativity. I try my best to teach in a way that honors student’s individuality and creativity, but I have had days when I’ve erred on the “success” side. It’s a fine line. BTW - both of my daughters have found success in different ways - my older daughter is an engineer who enjoys rock climbing and travel, my younger daughter went to school for engineering and decided to become an electrician who skydives on the weekends. They can both problem-solve creatively and definitely think outside the box.
The Hard Work of Originality is an idea that comes out in the later part of this Youtube video interview of Austin Kleon by Colin and Samir. Kleon wrote a book with a sensational title that is a bit misleading: Steal Like and Artist is actually about doing the hard work of researching and studying the work of other artists and creatives, and then finding what’s missing, and creating that missing piece. It’s less about plagiarism and theft, and more about acknowledging that all of our work rests on a foundation of community, but I love, love, love the end of this video and highly recommend it, especially those last five minutes about the hard work of originality and the question: “What are we chasing after?”
In the week after the wedding (this is now a date-time in my life, like CE, but instead AW), I took part in the 555 Challenge put on for free by Nicole Breit. It was a Creative Nonfiction Challenge of writing 5 100-word stories in a week with 20–30-minute live videos and a Facebook group. It stretched me in new ways, and I enjoyed it a great deal. Will there be more Creative Nonfiction in my future? Maybe.
I love journaling and so I enjoyed this article and recommend it:
A journal is a magic space to hang out - Austin Kleon (And if you didn’t notice that I’ve mentioned this guy twice, well, yeah, I consider him an inspiration, and I’ve been checking out the artists he likes to create an author/artist/creative family tree.)
It’s National Poetry Month. I’ve been writing poems each day and I highly recommend reading and writing poetry for writers. It gets us out of the sometimes-stodgy pace of prose and creates an awareness of language and word choice. Those poems can be found on my IG poetry page and here in a poem substack I started for the month. Some of them kind of suck, but they are drafts and I’m writing one a day. At the end of the month, I’m considering collecting them together, revising them, and sending them out into the world in a book-type way.
Today is Good Friday, and it’s my Pastor’s favorite worship service of the year, partly because of the meaning of the worship, and partly because he hands off the microphone to seven speakers from our congregation, asking them to speak on the last seven statements of Christ. It’s unique and interesting every year to hear the way these words affect each speaker in different ways. I will probably miss it because I’ve been sick and I hate missing it, partly because usually I get to sing. It’s a fun privilege taking part in the worship team because, well, if you didn’t know, I love worshiping God - I feel like the joy I get is a gift from God to me, because I know many people seem to find the whole thing uncomfortable or weird. I live in the mostly atheist Pacific Northwest and grew up in an extended family that was mostly agnostic. So please don’t argue with me about my faith - I’ve heard the arguments against, been there, done that, and I still love God. I would love for others to love God with me but have never found arguments to be particularly effective ways to share God’s love.
Easter is coming this Sunday! One of my favorite holidays of the year because He is Risen! And that’s what Christianity is about - saved from sin (Christ crucified), freed for eternal life (He is Risen).
5 Writing Prompts
Once upon a beach,
A place of refuge…
What’s one of your first defining moments of your childhood?
The best costume ever…
What if someone could get moon-burned instead of sunburned?
Bonus: What do you think the kingdom of God is like?