On the farm
I grew up on a farm in the MidWest. Not one of those fancy farms, where the barns are painted red and the pigs dance in the waving grasses. No, it was a working farm. The pigs rooted in the mud and ate corn that we tossed on the floor each morning. The farms in movies are nothing like mine, and neither are their hay lofts. I can’t imagine just jumping into a pile of hay — it was probably wrapped in twine, ready to be dragged out and tossed onto the truck. Still, nowadays, the only hay bales I see are in the city, with carefully crafted scarecrows on them. They have button eyes and red noses and the cutest little hats. Our scarecrows sported overalls and dirty baseball caps. Still, though, I know which scarecrows will spring to life and lead us down a yellow brick road this October. It’s the ones that we stuff full of whatever we can find. They come to life in the making, formed from our need and our desire to create — to breathe life into the world at the turn of the seasons.
Writing Prompts
- Compare and contrast
Often, when I am having a hard time writing a setting or describing a scene, I try to figure out what it is not. Take, for example, the scarecrows on the left: one beautifully produced, one purposefully produced. Figuring out what our scarecrow was NOT helped me figure out what it really was. It was homemade, and full of all the life that we could stuff into it. Take a moment and write your own study in contrast. Write a paragraph describing the house where you grew up, but focus on everything it was NOT. Maybe the windows did not have blinds. Maybe it was not painted white. Maybe it had no
picket fence. Describe for us what you house looked like by considering what it was not. I think you’ll find your way back home.
… - The invisibility of ghosts
She’s standing right behind you. You can’t see her, but she’s there. Who is she? Write her story.
… - Scared
Ghosts and scarecrows, ghouls and zombies — we’ve entered the season of fright, where tricks and treats are waiting just around the corner. You never know what you’ll find! Take a moment and list all the spooky words you can think of to put you into the Halloween mood. Review this paragraph to get yourself started. There’s plenty to give you goosebumps!