Chill…
There’s a delicious chill in the air this morning. It’s our first glimpse of the coming winter. I love pulling on a warm sweater and heading outside for a walk with my dogs before winter rushes in. These moments between seasons have a certain shine to them. We are in-between. Folkorists, like me, call in-between moments liminal. Usually, we use them to refer to times of celebration and times of change. A good example is New Year’s Eve, when we are on the cusp of a New Year. We also see twilight as a liminal time. These liminal moments can be times of great possibility and change — where we make new resolutions, create new relationships, or dissolve old ones. Liminal moments are when we stand on a threshold. When we start to look around, we realize that our lives are full of moments like these — the seasons change, light turns to dark, and we even celebrate rites of passage together to mark the most important of transitions. So, as you prepare for the upcoming holiday, bring with you the things you need, and cast off those that you don’t. It’s your season; it’s your time.
Writing Prompts
- Want
What do you want today? Kurt Vonnegut said that we should give our characters something that they want, even if it’s “only a glass of water.” If someone was writing the story of you, what would they write? What do you want? What drives you? Take a moment and write down what you want.
… - The insecurity of snowmen
Think of a snowman. I bet your imagination went straight to Frosty, with his corncob pipe and button nose. Or, maybe you thought of Olaf, with his gentleness and unexpected philosophizing. Now, take all those expectations and throw them out the window. What would a snowman really be like? Would he be filled with joy? Would she prefer the title Snow Queen? Bundle up, dive down into the snow, and tell us a story.
… - Chairs
You always sit in that chair, but you’ve never really examined it, considered it. Take a moment and write a poem about your chair. Consider it’s legs, the seat, the way it wobbles or doesn’t. If it could talk, what would it say? Would it whisper or raise its voice? Tell us about your chair.