"We must not say every mistake is a foolish one."
Cicero
106-43 BC
The water that artists traverse appears calm, even serene to the untrained eye. But to the artist, the water is swift, seething with secrets that want to be found. Whitewater. The painter cries, "Canvas!", the sculptor, "Marble!" For the writer, the water is paper. Blank, white paper. Every writer needs this maxim:
"Don't be afraid of mistakes."
Sounds simple? Maybe. But, until you've stared at the white, unable to write the letter 'A', the simplicity of the maxim is not your reality. It is my joy to guide a group of young writers through the whitewater. For them, the maxim is becoming reality.
Lacking Aplomb
Time sprints by through ticking
not one's but 2's scratch
The proctor's pointed heels begin clicking
her steady gait causes fear to hatch
Lacking aplomb, frantic thoughts start sticking
Essay prompts go by in a flash
pencils skate across answers at a mad dash
Judgment turns strongly toward rash
TIME!
Katie Metz
A Six-Word Sentence
by Izak Gainor
Love is the most prehensible subject.
Love Hole
Love is like a hole.
You don't choose it,
you fall into it.
You don't decide about love,
when you fall into the hole
The hole called love.
Sometimes you can't get out.
Jack Radford
Here is the story we read in class this week:
A Tale of Two Brothers
Genesis, Chapter Four, Verses 1-16
from The Message
Adam slept with Eve his wife. She conceived and had Cain. She said, "I've gotten a man, with GOD's help!" Then she had another baby, Abel. Abel was a herdsman and Cain a farmer. Time passed. Cain brought an offering to GOD from the produce of his farm. Abel also brought an offering, but from the firstborn animals of his herd, choice cuts of meat. GOD liked Abel and his offering, but Cain and his offering didn't get his approval. Cain lost his temper and went into a sulk. GOD spoke to Cain: "Why this tantrum? Why the sulking?
If you do well, won't you be accepted? And if you don't do well, sin is lying in wait for you, ready to pounce; it's out to get you, you've got to master it." Cain had words with his brother. They were out in the field; Cain came at Abel his brother and killed him. GOD said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" He said, "How should I know? Am I his babysitter?" GOD said, "What have you done! The voice of your brother's blood is calling to me from the ground.
From now on you'll get nothing but curses from this ground; you'll be driven from this ground that has opened its arms to receive the blood of your murdered brother. You'll farm this ground, but it will no longer give you its best. You'll be a homeless wanderer on Earth." Cain said to GOD, "My punishment is too much. I can't take it! You've thrown me off the land and I can never again face you. I'm a homeless wanderer on Earth and whoever finds me will kill me." GOD told him, "No. Anyone who kills Cain will pay for it seven times over." GOD put a mark on Cain to protect him so that no one who met him would kill him. Cain left the presence of GOD and lived in No-Man's-Land, east of Eden.
Students were asked to write character descriptions of the two brothers.
Here is Katie Metz's-
Cain- Taller than average height, he nurtured a growing sense of self importance and entitlement. It took years to develop his keen understanding of growing produce. He views himself as a leader.
Abel- Average in all areas of life except his superb ability to read the emotions in people. Inadvertently, he caused much of the angst in Cain's life.
This week, we also discussed Ernest Hemingway's advice to writers:
1. Use short sentences.
2. Use short first paragraphs.
3. Use vigorous English.
4. Be positive, not negative.
"There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed."
Ernest Hemingway
Words of the Day
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