When I (Ann) wrote about family culture in 2008, I offered a few simple thoughts and personal examples on the topic. Curious to learn more about the concept of family culture, I interviewed Dr. Helen Fagan, leadership and diversity scholar and practitioner, to understand the topic better and offer readers a solid resource. The following are Dr. Fagan’s thoughts on understanding and navigating family culture.

What Is Family Culture – Interview with Dr. Helen Fagan

Dr. Fagan: Culture is complex and multifaceted. A lot of times what we don’t necessarily recognize about culture is that the very first culture we get exposed to is our family culture.

It is the foundation for our values, our beliefs, our perceptions, our attitudes, and our expectations. It is so much a part of us that we don’t recognize it and set it apart as a family culture.

We choose the type of entertainment, we choose the type of people we hang out with. Every part of our family is part of the culture around us. If you Google the word culture, you’d get lots of definitions, but if you boil it down to a few things, culture is the norms, the attitudes, the values, the beliefs, the customs of a group that is passed down from one generation to another. If you think about it in that broad sense, you can see where as a family we teach those things to our kids, to our grandkids, to our nieces and nephews. We tell our kids, “Well, other families might do that but our family doesn’t do that or talk like that.” That’s cultural training, but we’re not recognizing it. Culture has multiple levels.

Multiple layers between familial culture and societal culture

Between familial and societal culture, a whole lot of layers fall in. Whatever area or facet that makes you unique and stand apart from society as a whole, that becomes part of your culture, whether it’s religion or socioeconomic status. If you are a religious family, you have a religious culture you ascribe to. If your family is in a higher socioeconomic level, you travel and spend money on certain things; if your family is of a lower socioeconomic level and you’re having to scrape money to make ends meet, all of that becomes ingrained in you and part of your culture.

Culture is the fish in water that doesn’t know it’s in water until you take it out of the water, and then it senses something is wrong, something is different. When it gets exposed to something new, it knows something’s wrong but doesn’t know what it is. Our physical being is connected to our cognitive and emotional being. We have emotional reactions when our culture’s values are either violated or ignored, and we first begin to recognize those cultural differences when we come in contact with other people who are different than us, whether it’s our neighbor, all the way to our spouse’s family, to our classmates and their families.

From societal we move to national culture. There’s a fine line between those two but the thing that is different is what part of the nation you are in. In a vast country like the United States, the culture is different among, say, the northeastern United States, southwest United States, and Central United States. National culture is its own layer but it has differences.

Then between the national and societal cultures, you have things like organizational culture, education environment, the type of work you do. Again, it goes back to the language people use in that environment, what are the norms and customs in that environment, and where did we learn that. Being a writer, you [Ann] learned about being a writer from other writers [in the family, both parents were journalists], and it was passed down from one generation to the next. Those generalizations are where we create ideas of what a culture looks like.

Families Bridging—or Not Bridging—the Culture Gaps

What happens is we have to navigate the differences. We get exposed to differences and have emotional reactions: Why are you doing that? or Why are you saying that? or Why do you believe that? That’s a couple trying to navigate it and build bridges. If they do it successfully, they create a new family culture that is unique and different, that they then teach their children.

The bigger the cultural difference, the harder you have to work to bridge that gap.

If you’re successful at doing that, chances are you are going to be successful creating the subculture. If people aren’t able to navigate those differences, if you’re unsuccessful for whatever reason, chances are you walk away thinking that there’s something wrong with that person, or that way of doing it, or seeing the world, or being.

Navigating Differences in Family Culture

My husband was raised in a family where his mother was married and divorced five times by the time I met him. His idea of marriage looked different than my idea of marriage, where my parents lived together but ended up living in different countries for the sake of sacrificing for their children. That became really difficult to navigate when my husband and I decided what our family would look like, how would we solve problems, how would we communicate with each other. We had help from friends and other family members, but a lot of it we had to navigate on our own because we didn’t know a lot of couples who had similar family experiences to help us navigate. For example, how do you discipline your children? The concept in an Iranian family is so different in an American culture like my husband grew up in. My ideas were very different from his.

Figuring out how were going to do all this was a process of communicating, and trial and error. How we spend money—what is our idea of saving versus spending versus giving—we had to talk about all those things. What one person considers to be luxury versus the other person. I came from a higher socioeconomic background, and for me, to have a maid is not a luxury—it’s a necessity. My husband came from a working class family where they were barely making ends meet. Having a maid? That would never happen. That was not even on his radar. We had to navigate those kinds of things.

I was raised Muslim, he was raised as what we called Chreasters—his family would attend church twice a year, on Easter and Christmas. We found faith together. Finding faith and growing in our faith together set us apart from both of our families and their backgrounds.

The interesting thing for our family culture: To raise our children to be globally minded—to think beyond the boundaries of the United States, or Iran, to be a global citizen—takes intentional work. With everything we had going on day to day, we wouldn’t have time for it, but if it’s necessity of life, your children are naturally engrained in that without you recognizing it.

Understanding Family Culture in the Context of Culture as a Whole

Navigating family culture is one of the most misunderstood areas of family dynamics. I would say that people—even in the world of professional counseling, psychologists, therapists, and life coaches—have not been trained to think of culture beyond race, ethnicity, nationality, religion. So when we come across the idea that all human beings are cultural beings, that seems like a foreign concept. When you take that and put it together for families, it seems there aren’t many resources available in that area.

And yet, whether people are trying to blend a family culture, or students are looking for resources on the topic of family culture, or business people are dealing with issues and trying to understand culture, or psychologists and therapists are trying to find resources to help family dynamics, understanding family culture in the context of culture as a whole is vital.

While I don’t conduct research of families crossing cultures and blending family cultures, nor do I teach in that, I do work with individuals in the area of cultural diversity, and my work with them has enhanced their ability to make those bridges with family members. One student was from Haiti getting his bachelors in nursing. He met his wife in the program, and they got married. On the last day of my class [on cross-cultural issues and cultural diversity], he said, “I just want to thank you. I believe this class has helped save my marriage. The cross-cultural differences I’ve been able to apply with my wife.”

People’s actions and decisions make sense to them. They may not make sense to me, but they make sense to them. Human beings do things for multiple reasons, so when I have a challenge with someone in my family, whether it’s my spouse, my mother, my children—whoever it is—if I’m challenged in my interaction with a family member, instead of assuming I know what they are doing or saying, I may want to pause and really reflect on the fact that what they’re doing and saying makes sense to them. It would help our relationship if I would pause long enough to try to understand things from their perspective instead of forcing my own ideas onto them.

We never know what’s going on for another person emotionally or cognitively. We assume we do because we’ve known them for a while. But we don’t. Human beings are constantly in a state of change and growth and development, from the point where someone treated me at the last light, or the grocery store, or how a family member talks to me at the house is affecting me emotionally and cognitively, but I’m not paying attention to that and I walk around wanting people to understand me when I’m not taking the time to understand them.

I think it really helps people to navigate relationship challenges to just pause long enough to take a deep breath and realize I’m seeing things through the lense of my own experience. I wonder what’s going on with this person? That would really enhance relationships.

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Though not much scholarly research exists specifically on the topic of family culture, Dr. Fagan recommends the following for further reading:

• “The Challenge of Cross-Cultural Family–School Communication” – Article by Elise Trumbull, EdD, an Independent Educational Consultant and co-creator of the Bridging Cultures Project
• “Cultural Sensitivity and Diversity Awareness: Bridging the Gap Between Families and Providers,” an article in a 1996 publication from the University of California, Berkeley.
• Explore books on cross-cultural issues from Nicholas Brealey Publishing and Intercultural Press
• Learn more from Dr. Fagan about developing cultural sensitivity and competence

______________________________

Is every hour rush hour at your house?

Explore the jarring effects of our overcommitted culture and find refreshing alternatives for a more meaningful family and spiritual life.

Find a pace that frees your family to flourish.

“Not So Fast is a gift to every reader who takes the time to slow down and breathe in its pages.”

—Lee Strobel, best-selling author of The Case for Christ

The post What Is Family Culture – Interview with Dr. Helen Fagan appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

At the reception, his friends and family performed skits, told jokes, reminisced, and sang songs….all in French. My husband translated as best he could, but he couldn’t keep up. The jokes flew at him, and it’s hard to translate jokes because half of the humor is contextual. I told him to just relax and enjoy himself. Meanwhile, I tried to guess the meaning of the speeches and toasts on my own. This was impossible, of course, and I ended up mentally exhausted. By the end of that evening, I promised myself I would never feel this way again.

I would learn French.

Instead of simply signing up for a class, however, I tried a DIY method, piecing together resources I collected here and there over the years. If I were launching this do-it-yourself language learning approach today, I would save up my pennies and buy Rosetta Stone French. But it didn’t exist back then, so I used what I could find.

Here is my non-sequential, piecemeal, do-it-yourself French program, cobbled-together with the resources I could put my hands on. I rarely worked through anything beginning to end, abandoning a book or program when I got bored.

Highly motivated to speak and understand the language (less concerned with writing), I applied myself daily and reinforced in as many ways as possible. I became functional in French, understanding quite a bit and able to express myself reasonably well. I’m not ADD, but I think this approach would accommodate an ADD personality as well as a non-sequential, easily bored personality.

Ann Kroeker’s Do-It-Yourself French

1. French in Action: The storyline is corny, but I think the French in Action video series sped up my language acquisition a hundredfold. You can watch the entire thing for free online as Video on Demand. I recommend setting aside about 30-40 minutes of “learning time” to watch each video (if possible, to reinforce the lessons, watch each one twice—not in one day, but maybe in two different sessions in a week—as they use an immersion approach that forces the learner to figure out a lot on her own). French in Action is one of my top recommendations.
2. Children’s books: I’ve found that one of the best ways to reinforce basic French is through children’s books, because they usually use simple but complete sentences and straightforward language. Ask at the library for the children’s foreign language books. You could even start with board books for babies and move up from there.
3. Continually rotate recordings from language programs (tapes, DVDs, and online recordings): Purchase various language programs at used bookstores, garage sales, library book sales, or sites selling used products like abebooks or Amazon.com used. Or browse the current library collection for programs to borrow. I would buy or borrow one for a while, listen and repeat, picking up what I could. If it came with written materials, I’d do some of the worksheets. When I got bored with one, I looked for another. Though not methodical, meticulous, thorough or sequential, listening and learning—and switching—is how I sustained interest. Be warned, however: it’s also why my grammar has great big holes in it. But I got to where I could speak and understand fairly well, so it worked for me.
4. Textbooks: I own a lot of French textbooks. I most often buy them used at book sales. Now, I’m sure that the smartest, cheapest and easiest thing to do would be to work through one textbook series, beginning to end, to be sure I have the grammar basics down; however, my goal was to speak French, not to read, write and translate. Once again, I would work on one book for a while and then switch. And then switch again. Variety helped me sustain interest.
5. Memorize phrases: I started out memorizing words, as any beginning student would do, but soon realized it worked better to memorize words in context. So I began to learn phrases and entire dialogues. I could listen to an interaction on one of my tapes or read one in a textbook, memorize the entire thing emulating the accents, and then have these in my head to draw from in conversation.
6. Imitate accents: Listening closely to recordings and videos, I worked hard to imitate accents, copying a lilt or the way the speaker held his mouth. This helped minimize my American accent, be better understood, and gain confidence. If you get Rosetta Stone, don’t forget to do the speaking portion.
7. Bible verses: I memorized Bible verses in French. All these years later, I can still recite Jean 3:16 and the beginning of Psaume 23.
8. French singers: Discover French singers who enunciate clearly and include their songs on your play lists. Due to the time period when I was learning, I listened to some popular ’80s and ’90s guys like Francis Cabrel and Jean-Jacques Goldman. If you can stand the ’80s hair and video production, here’s one called “Comme Toi” by Jean-Jacques Goldman. Someone has translated the lyrics here, so you can listen and read along. Goldman is fairly easy to understand—he enunciates clearly for the French learner. And then you can see how he looks a few years later, when he and Francis Cabrel sing the same song as a duet on a talk show (Cabrel sings it, even though it’s Goldman’s song).
9. French films (with English subtitles): I watched French movies and tried not to read the English subtitles too much.
10. English films (with French subtitles): I watched DVDs and turned on the French subtitles to read as I listened. Ah, I would think, so that’s a way to say such-and-such in French!
11. Counting: I would count in French while I exercised, going as high as possible. The repetition makes it more natural to speak and think in numbers.
12. Marry a francophone spouse (or host French speakers in your home): I married a man who grew up in francophone Belgium and regularly spoke with him in French, asking him to coach me on my accent. It may be too late for you to find a francophone spouse, but you could invite an exchange student to stay with you for a school year or host international French-speaking students for dinner. We’ve done this many times, as well (yes, we’ve had a French-speaking exchange student live with us for a semester and international university students over for meals).
13. Travel: Save your pennies and vacation to Canada, Haiti or French-speaking Africa, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland. One year our family traveled to Belgium for a family reunion and while there, my husband had emergency heart surgery. With him stuck in the hospital, I couldn’t rely on him as translator, so I was forced to use what I knew. Leading up to that trip, I had spent weeks reviewing French in Action and working through some of my textbooks. Thankfully, I had tucked enough French into my brain so that it was there when I needed it.

Bonus: Music & Singalongs: A friend reminded me in the comments how powerful singing can be as a powerful language-learning tool. How could I forget all of the kids’ songs I have sung with my kids? Frère Jacques, Sur le Pont d’Avignon, Au Claire de La Lune, to name a few. It doesn’t have to be kids’ songs, either. I already mentioned Goldman and Cabrel, but you could listen to the classic Belgian singer Jacques Brel perform the melodramatic “Ne Me Quitte Pas” and sing along with the sorrowful chorus. You will never forget that phrase.

Or, for a more encouraging tone, try some Christian options. Listen to “Tu Et Le Maitre,” a worship song by “Exo,” a Christian group my in-laws introduced me to, or the melodic praise song “Je Lève Les Yeux” by Constance (lyrics in French here).

The DIY approach is not the most efficient path to fluent French, nor is it the most thorough. But it’s kind of fun. And that’s important to me when I launch any long-term project like language acquisition: to sustain interest I need to have a little fun.

Whether you use these ideas to create a French curriculum of your own, or to enrich a French class you’ve signed up for, may you find yourself able to listen, understand, and speak confidently with your francophone friends.

May I leave you with a little fun? While I can’t recommend any other videos by these guys, “Foux de Fa Fa,” a scene from an episode of Flight of the Conchords, is a silly song incorporating the kinds of words and phrases students learn in French class. The chorus itself, however, “Foux de Fa Fa,” is a nonsense phrase.

The post Do-It-Yourself French (13 language acquisition ideas for the easily bored, non-sequential, or ADD learner) appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Each Wednesday I’m recording a Curiosity Journal to recap the past week. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.

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Some of you have mentioned that you’re keeping a Curiosity Journal, as well. Leave your link in the comments so that we can visit and enjoy your weekly review.

Reading

I started up Sophie’s World again, which I had abandoned several months ago; I also began reading Scott Russell Sanders‘ Staying Put: Making a Home in a Restless World.

I love the details Scott uses to remember the place of his youth as he drives to revisit it as an adult. He writes of Mr. Ferry, who used to let the neighborhood kids swim in his pond:

We knew that when we knocked at Mr. Ferry’s door, raising money for school or scouts, he would buy whatever we had to sell. He was a tender man. He loved his wife so much that when she died he planted a thousand white pines in her memory. The pines, spindly in my recollections, had grown into a forest by the day of my return. (7)

And while details like forsythia and willow trees bring his writing to life (show; don’t tell) I also appreciated this more straightforward observation:

One’s native ground is the place where, since before you had words for such knowledge, you have known the smells, the seasons, the birds and beasts, the human voices, the houses, the ways of working, the lay of the land, and the quality of light. It is the landscape you learn before you retreat inside the illusion of your skin. You may love the place if you flourished there, or hate the place if you suffered there. But love it or hate it, you cannot shake free. Even if you move to the antipodes, even if you become intimate with new landscapes, you still bear the impression of that first ground. (12)

Playing

I was planning to take a snapshot of this coffee mug one morning. It’s my favorite for coffee.

The Belgian Wonder’s sister gave it to us when we visited her in 2008. I admired it while sipping Douwe Egberts one morning in her kitchen.”Douwe Egberts coffee in a Douwe Egberts mug. I love it! It’s so retro, so fun,” I exclaimed. “Plus it’s not too big and not too small.”

As we were leaving to fly back to the States, she handed it to me. “We can get another here in Belgium,” she said. “Take it.” I almost cried. Not because of the mug, but because she was so generous. And, well, maybe a little because of the mug, too, because I loved it so.

Learning

My youngest daughter, 13 years old, jokes that most of what she’s wanted to learn, she’s learned from YouTube videos.

Curious about crochet, she watched several tutorials and followed those steps to perfect the basic stitches.

Then she found a pattern, worked on it quietly in her bedroom, and one day came down to reveal her creation:

Another day, she came down to model this:

She’s looked up recipes and discovered patterns to sew things, like a doll she needed to make for history class.

She sewed the doll from a soccer sock, and used a pattern found online to cut out clothes to be worn under a knight’s armor. She never did get around to making chainmail by bending bits of wire into circles using needle-nose pliers, but she did construct an interesting helmet from a plastic water bottle covered in duct tape.

And then there was the ukulele.

She didn’t follow a pattern for the ukulele. She just made it up as she went along, using discarded plastic jugs, rubber bands, and paper towel tubes plucked from the recycling bin.

It didn’t last long, nor did it actually make music. But she had fun making it.

Too bad she didn’t find this video by a man named Colin Webb of Homegrown Guitars. His accent is lovely, and his “shoeboxulele” is amazing. If you don’t have time to listen to him describing the parts he used (scrap wood, toothpicks, and fishing wire attached to the shoebox), at least scroll to 2:37 to hear him play “Has Anybody Seen My Gal?”

Reacting

Last Saturday morning, I dragged myself out of bed, pulled on running clothes, and plodded downstairs to use the “Richard Simmon’s Dreamstepper” I’d purchased used last winter. I know. Go ahead and laugh. Despite the name, it turned out to be a no-frills, functional stair-stepper that helped me get some exercise in the frigid, icy, bleak midwinter, when I wasn’t about to jog outside.

As I mentioned, Saturday morning I wasn’t in the mood to exercise, but I knew I needed to. So I grabbed some books and climbed onto the Dreamstepper and started stepping, stepping, stepping as I read. Yes, I read as I step. Anyway, about ten minutes later, I glanced at the shocks and saw liquid streaming down the metal frame.

Upon closer examination, I realized lubricant was squishing out of the shocks with each step.

Not good.

I phoned the store where I bought it and asked if they had any advice. “Bring it in and let me take a look,” the technician offered. So we hauled it over there, pulled it out of the minivan and set it on the parking lot. The technician climbed on and with the first step, fluid gushed out like a lazy geyser—bloop.

“Whoa!” he exclaimed, jumping off and looking closely. He pressed down on the step and more liquid oozed out the top. “This is shot. There’s no fixing it. It has to be trashed. I can take care of that for you,” he offered.

Sure, but now what?

He offered to discount something in the store to make up for the busted Dreamstepper, so we poked around looking for another stair climbing machine of some sort. They’re usually cheap, because stair-steppers are not very trendy.

Apparently stairsteppers are so out of style, the store didn’t even have one to try.

So we climbed on stationary bikes and ellipticals and pogo sticks and treadmills and one of those mini trampolines. The pogo stick was silly, the mini trampoline was too small, and the treadmill seemed noisy.

But after a few minutes on an elliptical, I started to sense potential. An elliptical could be something on which to cross train—something to get me through the winter months. While adjusting to the fluid motion of the elliptical, I felt like I was hovering, dreamlike—almost flying, like in the bamboo forest scene from “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.”We bought it.

We rarely buy impulsively. We usually spend months researching brands and hunting for coupons or discounts. That day, though, we just did it. We plunked down our credit card and bought an elliptical machine. It’s not a high-end model; in fact, it’s rather simple, slender, and inexpensive. Still, we sort of surprised ourselves by pointing at the machine and saying, “We’ll take it.”

“Today?” the guy asked.

“Today,” I answered. “Right now, before we change our minds. Load it in the van and we’ll drive it home.”

And that afternoon my husband, with help from the girl who constructs helmets out of duct tape, assembled the machine. It’s the first piece of exercise equipment we’ve purchased new, unless you count running shoes and soccer balls.I used it this morning, thinking how fun it feels to wake up and fly.

Writing

On Facebook, my friend Lloyd Work reminded me how fun it is to write haikus by posting this:

Haikus are easy.

But sometimes they don’t make sense.

Refrigerator.

So I am writing some haikus, too. Three lines: first is 5 syllables, second is 7, third is 5.

a powerful forcewind gusts strip leaves from maplebare trunk stands exposed

flickering candleone lone flame brightens the roomwe are not alone

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Credits:

Photos: Octopus image by Sophie Marie. All other images by Ann Kroeker. All rights reserved.

Book: Sanders, Scott Russell. Staying Put: Making a Home in a Restless World. Boston: Beacon Press, 1993. Print. (Amazon Associates Link)

The post Curiosity Journal: November 9, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Each Wednesday (or Thursday, if I’m running late) I’m recording a Curiosity Journal to recap the past week. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.

:::

Some of you have mentioned that you’re keeping a Curiosity Journal, as well. Leave your link in the comments so that we can visit and enjoy your weekly review.

Reading

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday I was using every spare moment to read student papers submitted for a writing class I’m facilitating: essays on Success and Failure based on a prompt created by SparkNotes. The class only meets once a week, so one of the ways I continue to teach is by embedding detailed evaluations directly into the text of their papers. It’s not the ideal way to offer input, but it’s better than nothing.On Monday, before diving into those papers, I managed to publish a response to a chapter in Mindfulness, the book I’ve been reading with The High Calling book club. I’ve mined no more than a few nuggets from this particular read, one of which I highlighted in that post.I also spent time last week reading through the word portraits composed in response to the Community Writing Project at The High Calling.

Playing

The current PhotoPlay prompt at The High Calling describes the use of contre-jour, or shooting against the light. Assistant Photo Editor Kelly Sauer‘s shots are always infused with light, creating a soft, soul-stirring glow. I longed to achieve that effect, but by the time I figured out how to change settings on my camera to let in more light, cloud cover and rain moved in. No sun. No light. No contre-jour.But during that first wave of playing around, I was able to capture this.It’s a start.Can’t wait for the sun to come out, so I can go out and play.

Learning

The other day my daughter came downstairs and mumbled that she felt funny all over. Achy. I swear I could see heat shimmering from her cheeks. While the rest of us went to co-op, she had to stay home, missing critical instruction.Before we left that morning, I asked, “Which class are you most concerned about?””Worldview,” she replied. “She’s going to explain everything we need to know about our papers, and I don’t want to mess mine up.””Anything else?””Well, maybe Algebra 2.”I should think so. It’s her most challenging subject.For Worldview, I plugged in my smartphone and set it next to one of the students, a fun and kind young man who is always eager to help. “Can this phone sit next to you and record the class?” I asked.”Sure!”I brought up the voice recorder and it rolled for the entire 1.5 hours. The student amused himself by leaning down and whispering things like, “Make sure you write this down. It’s important.” The young man happens to be quite attractive. When I brought home the recording for her that afternoon, I suspect she listened more attentively for the times he spoke directly to her.Then I had the brilliant idea of using Skype for Algebra 2. My daughter logged in at home and I logged in at co-op, setting my laptop on the table so that my daughter could listen to the lecture and take notes in real time.We dealt with minor glitches. For one, the class couldn’t hear my daughter; but she could hear the class, which is what mattered most. Also, she couldn’t see the board due to glare, but from what the teacher was saying and the students were asking, she understood the lesson.The next morning, her younger sister woke up with the same fever. Instead of having her skip or reschedule an Algebra 1 tutoring session scheduled that afternoon, I phoned the teacher and asked if she would consider trying Skype. She was willing. The teacher and my daughter met virtually, staying on track with her course work.

Reacting

On the ledge in our eating area sit bottles of sand and shells.On my dresser lies a smooth stick I lugged home from the Gulf of Mexico.In a glass bowl nearby, a collection of white rocks sifted from a dune.

As I look out the window next to my desk, sunlight struggles to penetrate cloud cover. We are given only a dull, lifeless, filtered gray-white.

I make tea as wind gusts fling branches.

I glance at my jars and try to imagine the feel of smooth white sand under bare feet, undulating surf curling in and skimming forward, leaving bubbly froth at my toes. I try from memory to hear the gulls and remember the silent, graceful pelicans gliding across the surface of the sea.

Then a rumble. The neighbor rolls his trash can up the driveway and into the garage. Someone flushes the upstairs toilet. I finish my tea and stare at the table for a moment before rinsing my cup.

Writing

I created the Community Writing Post summary for The High Calling on Wednesday, highlighting a couple of stories from the collection of word portraits that were composed. You can meet my grandmother.

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Credits: Question mark, jars of sand, and contre-jour photos copyright 2011 by Ann Kroeker.Langer, Ellen. Mindfulness. Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc., 1989. Print.

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The post Curiosity Journal: October 19, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

“this is a pen,” “this is a rose,” “this is a card.” It is assumed that the pen must be recognized as a pen so that a person can get on with the business of writing…What if a number of ordinary household objects were introduced to a child in a conditional way: “This could be a screwdriver, a fork, a sheet, a magnifying class”? Would that child be more fit for survival on a desert island (when the fork and screwdriver could double as tent pegs for the sheet, near a fire made by the magnifying glass)? (Langer 124)

I didn’t have to teach my kids that a pen was only a pen or a magnifying glass was only used to look at items up close. They quickly realized they could use a capped pen as a DS stylus and a magnifying glass to catch the sun and burn a hole in a piece of paper. When my kids were little, I would find pieces from board games mingling with Playmobil and money from Monopoly in a cash register that they used to play “store.” It drove me crazy; the banker was always short of money when playing Life and we never did locate all the jewelry from Pretty Pretty Princess when they merged it with their dress-up collection.But they were learning to make-do and solve problems. I sometimes wish I’d insisted they leave the board games intact, but I would soften as I watched them think—literally—outside the box, making new associations and spotting creative uses for all those plastic bits and pieces.Years ago, our friends had a cool set of nylon tunnels that could flip open for little kids to crawl through.After visiting their house and rolling around in those tunnels, our kids remarked that they’d love to have some tunnels, too. We didn’t buy any. Instead, our kids used clothespins to attach sheets to the couch and chairs for a makeshift tunnel that later morphed into a fort filled with pillows.They did so because they knew that big piece of material could be a sheet.Or it could be a tunnel.Or it could be a fort.Or it could be a cape. Or a toga. Or a cover for the bird cage. Or a tablecloth for the picnic table. Or an ocean for stuffed animals to sail across.

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I’m linking to The High Calling Book Club this week, as they work their way through Mindfulness, by Ellen Langer.Credits: Forks and clothespins by Ann Kroeker. Milk Crates Stacked by limonada (Emilie Eagan), used with permission.

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The post Could Be appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Each Wednesday I’m recording a Curiosity Journal to recap the past week. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.

:::

Some of you have mentioned that you’re keeping a Curiosity Journal, as well. Leave your link in the comments so that we can visit and enjoy your weekly review.

Reading

A few months ago I saw a book titled The Sacredness of Questioning Everything. Intrigued, I thought I should order it—after all, a book about questioning seems appropriate for a person who keeps a Curiosity Journal. But the thought skipped past, and I failed to act on it.Some time later I learned that an author named David Dark was leading a session at the Laity Lodge Writers’ Retreat. I had never heard of David Dark, but, boy, did I love his name! Sounds like the alter ego of some comic book hero who transforms from local television news reporter to powerful, shadowy superhero that swooshes in unnoticed to confound a villain and foil his dastardly plans.Turns out David Dark is a writer of Christian nonfiction.Of course, that might just be his cover: nonfiction author by day, unstoppable superhero by night.Anyway, I finally put it together that David Dark authored The Sacredness of Questioning Everything, which I did, at last, order.Meanwhile, a couple of days ago, while leafing through my daughter’s college reading material, I spotted a quote from that very book, where Dark claims, “Show me a transcript of the words you’ve spoken, typed or texted in the course of a day, an account of your doing, and a record of your transactions, and I’ll show you your religion” (David Dark, as quoted by Jeff Cramer).David Dark, who was completely unknown to me a month or so ago, has practically become a household name.

Playing

I forgot to post pictures from the birthday boy’s gathering a couple of weekends ago. Our friends bought him Blokus.A game suitable for a wide range of ages.While four people played Blokus, our youngest guest unearthed some toy handcuffs and latched one cuff around his mom’s wrist. Click. He attached the other to the chair. Click.Ha-ha-ha. His mom was momentarily handcuffed to a spindle of the chair, until, at her request, he released the cuff attached to the chair with the click of a button. The other cuff, however, remained snug against her wrist.Ha-ha…uh-oh.The click-of-a-button didn’t release the second cuff. It was stuck. She said she wasn’t nervous, but after her husband, a scientist, and the Belgian Wonder, an all-around problem-solver, fiddled with it for twenty-five minutes without success, I felt nervous.The two men worked together, offering theories as to why it happened and suggestions for how to jigger it loose. Eventually, they figured out its mechanism, so the Belgian Wonder used pliers to turn a lever while the scientist poked a skinny, sharp tool into a tiny hole to trigger a broken release button.The cuff popped open.But not before leaving its mark.

Learning

I’m learning never to leave broken toy handcuffs out where a six-year-old boy can get his hands on them—his first thought, of course, is to snap them around someone’s hands, which will immediately alter the mood of any gathering.Also—and this is an aside, but—never ever brag about what a good dog you own. That day or the next will be the day he does something very naughty, or very gross.And that’s all I have to say about that.

Reacting

My first progressive lenses are leaving me feeling a little dizzy…and a little old.

Writing

Charity’s call to become masterful intrigues me. Unsure how to proceed, but considering ideas.Come to think of it, I’m invited to submit 1000-2000 words of a complete essay or a work in progress to my Writer’s Retreat workshop leader, so I suppose I should start there. The session is on memoir and the deadline looms.Yes, I should begin immediately.

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Credits:Cramer, Jeff. “Keeping Technology in Context.” Computing & Culture-Applications & Context. Boston: Pearson Learning Solutions, 2011. Print.All photos copyright 2011 by Ann Kroeker.Note: This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

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The post Curiosity Journal: Sept. 7, 2011 (David Dark, Blokus, handcuffs, aging, masterful memoir) appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Each Wednesday I’m recording a Curiosity Journal, a recap of the past week. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.

:::

Some of you have mentioned that you’re keeping a Curiosity Journal, as well. Leave your link in the comments so that we can visit and enjoy your weekly review.

Reading

Now that home-school classes have begun, I find that I’ll be devoting several chunks of my week to reading and commenting on student papers. With only six kids in High School Composition, however, I can give their work close attention and provide what I hope to be valuable input.In our family, the kids and I are starting to read aloud Anna and the King, by Margaret Landon, and A Praying Life, by Paul E. Miller. We selected Anna and the King because the Belgian Wonder’s great-grandparents were missionaries in Siam and became acquainted with the author (I have yet to sort through those details, but that’s the bottom line). Reading the book seemed like a fun way for my kids to become familiar with a place that is woven into their heritage.

Playing

Soccer season has begun.Some of us play; some of us chat. Some of us snap pictures or cheer; and a lot of us relax and read.

Learning

My son signed up to run with the middle school home-school cross country team this year. Though he’s one of the youngest runners, he said he wanted to try. When those first practices started up in the sweltering weeks of late July, he slipped on his running shoes and shorts, stuck on a cap, and came out to log a few miles with the team.But he’s slow. So slow, in fact, that he’s often passed by people walking. And he complains a lot. And as the season has progressed, he sometimes just quits halfway through the practice and sits on a bench, chatting with the moms.One day, when I was frustrated at his complaining, I told him that there’s a place inside all of us, a spot, that we all have to draw from.”What’s that spot?” he asked.”It’s the ‘I-don’t-want-to-do-it-but-I’ll-do-it-anyway’ spot. You won’t learn about it in anatomy class, and it’s not a very good name—doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue—but it’s a very important spot.”He nodded.”You have to draw from that spot for homework, for chores, and you really have to draw from it for cross country practice.””My spot is reeeeeeeally tiny,” he said.”I know,” I said, nodding. “It’s very small, but it can get bigger. And the great thing is that every time you do something you don’t want to do, it gets a little bit bigger.””It’s just a teeeeny-tiny sesame seed,” he said, holding his finger and thumb together so that they almost touched.”But if you go out and do the whole workout,” I assured him, “the spot will get a little bit bigger, and then the next time you have to do something you don’t want to do, it’ll be a tiny bit easier.””No, it’s a poppyseed,” he interrupted, trying to land on the best metaphor.”So,” I continued, “are you going to finish the workout today without complaining? Because I guarantee you that not one of these runners wants to go out and run two miles in the hot sun, but they’re going to do it anyway, and they aren’t going to complain about it.””Their spots must be huge!” he said.”Not necessarily. But their spots will be a little bigger when they’re done, that’s for sure.”He agreed to finish the workout, and he did it with only minimal complaints. After, he announced, “I think it’s a sesame seed now. It went from a poppyseed to a sesame seed.””That’s progress,” I said. “Good job.”Weeks have passed, and some practices go better than others. The other night, we were running around a track, one hundred meters fast/one hundred meters slow, for a minimum of eight laps. It was tough, but the air temperature was cool and tall trees offered lots of late-afternoon shade. My son did six laps and was threatening to quit. The last few runners were coming in, and the assistant coach was passing out team shirts. I had told my son earlier that if he didn’t do the workouts, he wouldn’t get a shirt.”Am I going to get a shirt, Mama?” he asked as he rounded the curve and came up to where the team was grabbing water bottles and cooling down.I moved close to him, so the others wouldn’t hear. “You’ve done some of the workouts, but remember at the park last week? You just ran a little bit and gave up. So, no. You aren’t putting in enough miles to run a meet, so there’s no reason for you to have a shirt.””I’ll finish the workout tonight! I’ll do two more laps!””You have to do the fast 100s fast. And you’ll have to do every workout between now and the first meet or you won’t be ready.””I’ll do it!” he exclaimed, taking off like a flash. I watched him go around, and he was really working. I realized that up until that night, he’d never really pushed himself; but right then, he was moving along strong. When he completed the final lap, he came in breathing hard, sweating.”Now that was a workout!” I said. “That’s what it feels like to run. You actually look flushed and sweaty, like you pushed yourself.””Can I…get…a shirt?” he asked between intakes of breath.I hesitated, not knowing if he’d done enough to pull off a meet. But there he was in front of me, heart pounding after earnest aerobic effort, walking around a little to cool down. His fast-twitch muscles were probably twitching for the first time, in a good way.Even though the shirts are overpriced, and even though he has a long way to go, I said yes. “Yes, you can have a shirt.”He clapped his hands and the assistant coach handed him an adult small, which was a little bit big, but not too bad. He pulled it on over his T-shirt. When his head popped through, he was grinning big.I was talking with two parents when he strode over and stated, “Tonight, I think the spot inside of me has grown to the size of a volleyball!“Then he skipped back to his sisters.The two moms looked at me funny. I grinned. “I suppose I should explain about the volleyball-sized spot?”

Reacting

The writing class I’m facilitating is going to be challenging at times, but I guess I’m going to draw from that spot inside of me and just do it. My spot’s pretty big, I think. Maybe the size of a soccer ball.

Writing

Though much of my writing has been prep work for the class, my part is mostly done. Now it’s up to the students to do the writing and revision.And I can get back to a writing schedule and rhythm of my own.I’d like to be a more reliable blogger and contribute to The High Calling more often.I did write a little post for Writer…Interrupted about families and scheduling.I’ll leave you with a shot of the soccer fields I mentioned in that piece. This shows the line of trees where the children pick up nuts.

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Credits:Question mark image: “Question Proposed” photo by Ethan Lofton. Used under a Creative Commons license via Flickr.com.”Litchfield Track” by Jamison A. Kissh. Used with permission via Flickr.All other photos copyright 2011 by Ann Kroeker.Note: This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

There’s always more to come: subscribe to Ann Kroeker by e-mail

Want to slow down in our fast-paced world? Check out Not So Fast.

“Like” me on Facebook.

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The post Curiosity Journal: August 31, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Each Wednesday I’m recording a Curiosity Journal, a recap of the past week. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.

:::

Some of you have mentioned that you’re keeping a Curiosity Journal, as well. Leave your link in the comments so that we can visit and enjoy your weekly review.

Reading

I’ve got to finish organizing the class I’m facilitating, which has me reading books like The Lively Art of Writing, Essays & Term Papers, and that little classic I always enjoy re-reading, The Elements of Style.A recent distraction arrived in the form of a philosophy book. My sister-in-law with the PhD in philosophy, whom I frequently pester with questions, recommended a nice, simple, mentally digestible overview called, What Does It All Mean?: A Very Short Introduction to Philosophy, which I requested through our inter-library loan system. I kind of forgot about it until I opened the notification that it arrived. Because I requested it, I was obligated to pick it up. Now I’m tempted to leaf through that slim volume and read a few paragraphs, but I really must focus on class preparations.Fortunately I have three weeks to read and return the book, and it is truly very short. Maybe I’ll take a break over the weekend and zoom through it. Then over fall break I could try to finish Sophie’s World and then, throughout winter, surprise you by slipping into my posts an assortment of deep thoughts and philosophical musings.But first I must ask…what is the meaning of thought?(Just trying out some philosopher-speak.)

Playing

Remember the PhotoPlay assignment I told you about? The one that The High Calling Photo Editor Claire Burge put together?

I didn’t finish it.I only have four out of five photos.Claire asked participants to upload five images that represent their history. Her assignment?Each image must answer a question below, one question per image:

1. Who made up your DNA?
2. Where do you come from?
3. What object is precious to your past?
4. What memory resonates most deeply?
5. What moment in history marks your childhood?

She said to find symbols to portray the memories.I couldn’t find five symbols or images. Only four. I’ve highlighted them in the list above.I am connecting this shot of a gate with “Where do you come from?”I featured this photo in yesterday’s post but have chosen to share it here, as well, in connection with that question. Perhaps one day I can put words to why it answers “Where do I come from?” For now, the image alone must suffice.Though I suspect that eventually the more symbolic gate will generate deeper memories, I’m submitting the following photo for “What memory resonates most deeply?” To read about the memory that spontaneously came to the surface, see yesterday’s post.For the precious object, I’m cheating a little. I didn’t really think of anything that was precious to my past, but I did love to climb to the top of our metal play set and overlook the farm fields. And I would pump the see-saw so that it reached its full extension, with or without a companion on the other seat. I kept it up for years until wasps took up residence in the hollow frame.“Who made up your DNA?”Here’s a shot of some hands I’m related to:Or maybe these would work:

Learning

I’m learning that reflecting on the past and thinking in symbols is hard.

Reacting

It seems I get a lot of my early news flashes through social media. For example, I saw that Chris Cree, founder of EmmanuelPress, mentioned on Facebook and Twitter that an earthquake had shaken Colorado. Today, I heard via e-mail about the earthquake in Virginia.I’m sorry to hear that some spires on the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., were damaged, and the Washington Monument appears cracked. But it sounds like people were spared and no major catastrophes resulted from the shaking.I know it must be disconcerting to experience an earthquake in a place that is rarely hit (our state felt a minor rumble last year and talked about it all day), but this made me laugh.

Writing

Mostly writing lesson plans.

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Credits:Question mark image: “Question Proposed” photo by Ethan Lofton. Used under a Creative Commons license via Flickr.com.All other photos copyright 2011 by Ann Kroeker.Note: This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

There’s always more to come: subscribe to Ann Kroeker by e-mail

Want to slow down in our fast-paced world? Check out Not So Fast.

“Like” me on Facebook.

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The post Curiosity Journal: August 24, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Each Wednesday I’m recording a Curiosity Journal, a recap of the past week. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.

:::

Some of you have mentioned that you’re keeping a Curiosity Journal, as well. Leave your link in the comments so that we can visit and enjoy your weekly review.

Reading

Luci Shaw’s Breath for the Bones includes a chapter on Paying Attention, exploring themes within that broader topic.Waiting.During dinner at family camp, someone asked if I had a new writing project in the works. Several couples were sitting around the table, and all eyes were on me, waiting for my response.”Well, I have an idea,” I began, “and I want to write it, but I…I can’t explain it, but I just don’t feel like God has given me the go-ahead. I don’t know why, but I’ve found that if I move ahead on an idea before God says ‘now,’ it’s just a bunch of wasted words. So, no. I don’t have a project in the works. I’m just waiting.”They nodded. Though they weren’t writers, they seemed to understand what it means to wait on God.Luci Shaw seems to understand, too, and shares that the Psalms are full of waiting. She cites Psalm 33:20, “Our soul waits for the LORD” and Psalm 27, “I shall always wait in patience…take heart and wait for the LORD.” Psalm 130:6, “My soul waits for the Lord…” and Psalm 5:3, “I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.”That’s where I’m at on the writing project. I’ve laid my requests before the Lord and wait in expectation.”Waiting,” Shaw observes, “seems to be an inevitable part of the human condition, an inevitable part of the creative life” (Shaw 118).I’d rather wait than rush ahead and regret the results.I may be waiting, but while I wait, I’m paying attention and taking lots of notes.Noticing.Now that I’m trying to improve my photography skills, I’m slowly beginning to notice more moments, more details.A student asked Shaw, “Don’t you get tired of noticing things?” In response, Shaw quoted Annie Dillard (from an essay written for Life magazine):

We are here to abet Creation and to witness it, to notice each thing, so each thing gets noticed…so that Creation need not play to an empty house. (Shaw 199)

I never thought of that before, the idea of bearing witness to Creation and noticing each thing…through the lens, through description, through a moment’s observation with the human eye.”We cannot take in the whole universe at once,” Shaw says, so we take it in one detail at a time:

Every day gives us new chances for small discoveries, ways to view some commonplace object from a fresh angle…to recognize what we already know but still need to learn, to detect the extraordinary in the ordinary. A move in the direction of this kind of awareness is a move toward a fresh appreciation of our richly detailed universe–the Creator’s handiwork. The prime motivation for this exercise is curiosity; the prime requisites are time and focused attentiveness. (Shaw 119-120)

Small things.My friend and colleague Claire Burge sent a link to a video called “Learn.” I watched it and wrote back, “Learn! Yes! Would love to live this big! I try, in small ways, daily…”I’d love to live and write about big events, big outings, big learning opportunities in which I learn and grow and celebrate.But my life is mostly about small, simple, daily decisions and interactions. My big…is small.In Scripture, Shaw says, small things often led to large consequences: the fruit from the tree in Eden, the dove with its olive branch, the voice calling to Samuel in the night, the widow’s oil, the widow’s mite, the coin in the fish’s mouth, a seed, a pearl, a sparrow, a hair—each hair—on your head, my head.In the depths of a person, a big story is playing out. “Never despise the power of small things, like seeds, to transform the landscape of the heart” (Shaw 122).

Playing

As Luci Shaw reminded me, every day gives me new chances for small discoveries, ways to view some commonplace object from a fresh angle…to move toward a fresh appreciation of our richly detailed universe—the Creator’s handiwork.Before leaving for work Tuesday morning, the Belgian Wonder popped in and announced that some “impressive mushroom-like fungus” was growing off the side of the mulch pile.Luci Shaw said that the prime motivation for learning to pay attention is curiosity. Who wouldn’t want to investigate some impressive fungus? (Don’t answer that; I like to imagine you would run out the door with me.)I moved in close, trying to capture the texture, form, and subtle colors of this odd colony that popped out overnight after long-awaited rain.From the Falls to fungus…all things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small…it’s all part of God’s Creation, His handiwork.And I bear witness to it.

Learning

It’s more challenging to move toward “a fresh appreciation of our richly details universe—the Creator’s handiwork” when witnessing the gruesome reality of the food chain plays out in our back yard these past few weeks.Though cicada killer wasps look large enough to sting and stun Shrek, they are relatively harmless to humans. The males have no stinger at all, I’ve learned, and the female uses hers almost exclusively to paralyze cicadas to feed to their young. Rarely will she sting a human.These giant insects fly low, hovering just a few feet above the ground, swooping over, around, and into nests they’ve dug into the soil. I’ve watched one carry a cicada to the nest opening and drag it into the shadowy depths to be consumed by the larvae.We step gingerly to the garden these days, avoiding these piles of dirt that peek through the grass like land mines spread across the yard.By the way, if you’ve never seen a cicada’s shell, I happened to find one stuck to the side of our back porch.And if you’ve never seen a cicada, well, I found one of those, too.And if you’ve never heard a cicada, you can hear a recording here. Interestingly, we’ve not heard that ubiquitous, almost deafening, summer sound this year. More wasps, fewer cicadas.

Reacting

So, how about that stock market?

Writing

I’ve laid my requests before the Lord and wait in expectation.Works Cited:

• Shaw, Luci. Breath for the Bones: Art, Imagination, and Spirit. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2007. Print.
• Question mark image: “Question Proposed” photo by Ethan Lofton. Used under a Creative Commons license via Flickr.com.
• All other photos by Ann Kroeker.

There’s always more to come: subscribe to Ann Kroeker by e-mail

Want to slow down in our fast-paced world? Check out Not So Fast.

“Like” me on Facebook.

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The post Curiosity Journal: August 10, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Each Wednesday (except this week, when I missed my deadline) I’m recording a Curiosity Journal, a recap of the past week. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.

:::

Some of you have mentioned that you’re keeping a Curiosity Journal, as well. Leave your link in the comments so that we can visit and enjoy your weekly review.

Reading

The July 28 entry in My Utmost for His Highest:

What we call the process, God calls the end…His purpose is that I depend on Him and on His power now. If I can stay in the middle of the turmoil calm and unperplexed, that is the end of the purpose of God. God is not working towards a particular finish; His end is the process–that I see Him walking on the waves, no shore in sight, no success, no goal, just the absolute certainty that it is all right because I see Him walking on the sea…God’s end is to enable me to see that He can walk on the chaos of my life just now. If we have a further end in view, we do not pay sufficient attention to the immediate present: if we realize that obedience is the end, then each moment as it comes is precious. (Chambers 152-153)

This has helped me gain perspective in the midst of a massive traffic jam, patiently await the conclusion of a complicated business issue that has stretched out unresolved all summer, and accept various symptoms and flare-ups of a prolonged respiratory ailment. If I can stay in the middle of the turmoil calm and unperplexed, with absolute certainty that it is all right because I see Him walking on the chaos of my life just now, that is the end of the purpose of God. When I realize that obedience is the end, then each moment as it comes is precious.I’ve also been reading Breath for the Bones (not “Bones for the Breath,” which I learned from an Amazon search equates to doggie dental treats). As I look ahead to the chapter “Beginning with Journal Writing,” I see how critical it is as a writer—as a human being in this moment, in this place, in this world at this time—to capture sounds, colors, images, conversations, and follow them where they may lead. This is how I can go back and recreate a scene or interaction to tell the story rich with detail. This is how I can preserve and process life.Luci Shaw quoted Henri Nouwen as saying, “Writing is a process in which we discover what lives in us. The writing itself reveals what is alive…The deepest satisfaction of writing is precisely that it opens up new spaces within us of which we were not aware before we started to write. To write is to embark on a journey whose final destination we do not know” (Shaw 95).I must start writing and see where it leads, asking for the Holy Spirit to direct my steps and then pay attention, following His lead.Luci also quoted William Saroyan, “The task of the writer is to create a rich, immediate, usable past” (Shaw 96). Where and who I’ve been can be right here with me, in my journal, in my blog posts, in any personal narrative writing project.Luci describes a consistent, personal journal as a form of prayer, as the words poured out on the blank white pages “can free us, nudging us into the kind of confidence in the process that eases our way into writing as a way of discovering and articulating who we are before God” (Shaw 96). I have experienced this. Many of my journal entries slip from straight narrative or questions into prayer. This is why I am shy for people to peek, for how personal it can be.But it’s also a lively spot where the creative process unfolds; where I explore early project ideas. As Luci points out, in a journal we see how where we’ve come from and how we’ve grown.I’m glad to have bought the blank book with white pages, no lines. Just space. I can position the book vertically or horizontally, I can write diagonally or in swirls. I can doodle. I can make lists. I can jot phone numbers in a little unused corner of the page with sermon notes. It can be messy or organized; creative or ordinary. I can be any of those things at any given moment—why not have my journal serve as a true reflection of my curious, creative, messy, multifaceted self?

Playing

Haven’t played Bananagrams since we returned from vacation, but my family and I sure have enjoyed playing with photography. Will you humor me with a little slide show of sorts, a photo album, of our week of family camp? Despite all my talk of detailed journal-keeping and how that leads to powerful storytelling, I’ll spare you narrative and let the photos tell the story.

Learning

At family camp, I sat on one of the Adirondack chairs to talk photography with my friend, award-winning photographer Bill Vriesema, someone who knows the craft well. I learn so much from him, not only during these impromptu discussions, but also by enjoying and studying his images and reading how he approaches his work.

Reacting

My health status makes for riveting entries under “reacting.” Seems my respiratory system is always reacting for better or worse to something: allergies, exercise, medication, infection. For example, the doctor thinks that the sinus infection reacted well to the antibiotics but aggravated asthma. The result? Coughing spasms that sounded like a crackling bonfire was aflame in my lungs. Doctor has me taking more stuff. So far, so good. Coughing is calmed. For now.

Writing

Writing in my journal, per Luci’s inspiration.And here.Works Cited:

• Chambers, Oswald. My Utmost for His Highest. Westwood, NJ: Barbour and Company, Inc., 1963. Print.
• Shaw, Luci. Breath for the Bones: Art, Imagination, and Spirit. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2007. Print.
• Question mark image: “Question Proposed” photo by Ethan Lofton. Used under a Creative Commons license via Flickr.com.
• Butterfly and sparkling water w/rock photos by N. Kroeker, used with permission. Cove, lamp and Ann-leaning-on-post photos by P. Kroeker, used with permission. All other photos by Ann Kroeker. All copyright 2011.

• There’s always more to come: subscribe to Ann Kroeker by e-mail
• Want to slow down in our fast-paced world? Check out Not So Fast.
• “Like” me on Facebook.
• Follow me on Twitter.

The post Curiosity Journal: August 4, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Each Wednesday I’m recording Curiosity Journal, a recap of the past week. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.

:::

Some of you have mentioned that you may begin posting a Curiosity Journal, as well. Monica started up her Curiosity Journals last week, so if she publishes one today, I’ll send you over.

Reading: The Day I Became an Autodidact: and the advice, adventures, and acrimonies that befell me thereafter, by Kendall Hailey, is totally distracting me from all other titles.

Playing: Since I’m a miserable failure at playing games, I’ll show you the next-closest thing to play, and it involves my new best friend.

Remember how Tom Hanks’ character in “Castaway” had his friend Wilson?

Well, I have “Dunlop.” (I have yet to draw a face.)

Because I’ve categorized this under “Playing,” You might assume that I’ve taken Dunlop along to the neighborhood tennis courts to thwack him over the net.

You would be mistaken.

He’s playing a much more vital role in my life.

You see, I discovered the joys of using a tennis ball for back massage. I poked around some videos and instructional websites that encourage people to give it a go and thought, “This could be fun to try.”

Digging through some old boxes in the garage, I turned up Dunlop. And now, having tested his potential as a personal massage therapist, I am urging everyone to befriend a tennis ball.

Learning: I figured out how to get some “share” buttons on my blog using a WordPress.org plug-in. It automatically provided an RSS feed gizmo on the right that says “Follow” and stays visible as you scroll down the page. Not sure if I like that or not, but I was happy to learn how to get something installed. Now you can tell me if it’s easy to share this post with a simple click on the appropriate icon (all are displayed at the bottom of each post).

Reacting: Thursday night, Charity and I attended a lecture on Design and Happiness by Stefan Sagmeister held at the Art Museum. If you’re curious, take a minute to read Charity’s marvelous description of the evening. And this TED lecture has some of the same content, though the lecture we attended was much longer. And, if I might say so without bragging, as an audience we were much livelier than the TED audience (in spite of having waited two hours for Sagmeister to arrive).

Sagmeister is making a short documentary film about happiness, using himself as a guinea pig to test various theories on what can increase a person’s happiness and well being.

On Sunday, when we were with my parents and brother for Father’s Day, I told everyone Sagmeister’s statement that one simple and rather obvious way to increase happiness is to do more of the things that you like to do and fewer of the things that you don’t. So he made a list of things he likes to do, most of which were related to his work as a designer and artist.

I asked the others what would be on their lists. As everyone sat in thought for a moment, I turned to my dad and asked, “Well, since it’s Father’s Day, why don’t we start with you, Dad. What makes you happy?”

He cleared his throat and responded, “Well, I suppose it would be the same as what Winston Churchill said, that his idea of a good dinner would be to first have good food, then discuss good food, and then to discuss an interesting topic…with myself,” and here my dad pointed to himself, tapping his chest, “as chief conversationalist.”

Happiness for my dad, you see, is to be heard. As it turned out, he went on to introduce a variety of topics he was interested in and without a doubt, served as chief conversationalist. I gave him a book as a Father’s Day gift that may or may not make him happy; but as it turned out, we provided far more happiness than a physical gift could offer, simply by listening.

Because we were so accommodating to my dad, however, I never did find out what makes my mom or brother happy.

The next day, I was browsing the New Books section of the library and came across The Happiness Project, in keeping with the theme of the week. I checked it out and brought it home, but haven’t cracked it open yet because of the autodidact book.

Speaking of which, I was reading another chapter in The Day I Became an Autodidact, wherein Kendall’s Uncle Thomas, who is confined to a wheelchair, has a health scare. They almost lose him—he even undergoes brain surgery—but he makes it through and is able to return home. She writes:

It is 5:16 A.M. and I’ve just checked on Thomas and Puli [the dog]. Thomas is home and they’re back together–pretty cruel to make a man who just had brain surgery sleep with such a neurotic dog, but they’d missed each other.

I left them both sleeping soundly, which is what I now plan to do. I tend to check every hour through the night and Nanny will be up in about forty-five minutes. No one has told us to check so often, or that there’s any need to at all, but when you know where your happiness is, it does seem foolish not to check on it every once in a while. (Hailey 131)

When you know where your happiness is…check on it every once in a while.Where’s your happiness?

Writing: The stories I tell while filling these Curiosity Journal categories could be divided into several posts and published over several days. I wonder sometimes if I should spread stuff out. Of course, then you might not look forward to Wednesdays as much.

Works Cited:

Hailey, Kendall. The Day I Became an Autodidact: and the advice, adventures, and acrimonies that befell me thereafter. New York: Dell Publishing, 1988. Print.

“Question Proposed” photo by Ethan Lofton. Used under a Creative Commons license via Flickr.com. Tennis ball and book cover photos by Ann Kroeker.

The post Curiosity Journal: June 22, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

I’m recording an occasional Curiosity Journal, a recap of the past week or so. Tag words are: reading, playing, learning, reacting and writing.

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Some of you have mentioned that you may begin posting a Curiosity Journal, as well. Monica started up Curiosity Journals this week, so mosey on over to her place (after reading my spectacular entries below) to link up HERE.Reading: Guess what? I’m still reading Sophie’s World.  I really do like it; it’s just that I get distracted with lots of things, including other books. For example, two weeks ago I read a recommendation of The Day I Became an Autodidact: and the advice, adventures, and acrimonies that befell me thereafter, by Kendall Hailey. After tracking it down through the inter-library loan system, I started it and couldn’t put it down. Some excerpts:

I have great autodidact news.At sixteen, Tolstoy entered the University of Kazan but was hopelessly disappointed (I confess the encyclopedia did not actually say “hopelessly”) and returned to his estate to conduct his own education. (Little did I know what a big role country homes and estates played in literary life. I’ve got to get one.)I shared this information with all available family members, and when I returned to the encyclopedia was very glad I had not read them the next phrase, which said that he did not achieve much success. (Hailey 4)

And this:

Puli, my dog (he is a puli and his name is Puli and it wasn’t my idea), is so wonderful. In the eleven years we have had him, we have always called him to dinner in the same way (briefly—”Dinner, Puli”) and yet every day he turns his head in sheer wonderment and happiness for a few moments before dashing to it, not quite believing that he is really getting dinner again tonight. He may be a dog, but don’t tell me he doesn’t have a real grip on life. (Hailey 13)

I’ll leave you with this for now:

Just found out Katherine Mansfield was ugly. I know that’s a stupid thing to say—especially after admiring Gertrude Stein—but the way Katherine Mansfield writes…I had always thought of her as a beautiful young girl with pen in hand. Perhaps, while writing, she was. (Hailey 14)

Did I mention that Kendall wrote this when she was 16 years old?Although no one in the family likes Whatever Happened to Penny Candy? very much, we’re all learning about economics, inflation and recession; so, despite eye-rolls and groans, I continue to pull it out and read a short chapter that we briefly discuss. It’s like mental broccoli: everybody has to take a small serving because it’s good for us.Playing: Confession: I refused to serve at our church’s VBS (Vacation Bible School) this year.Two years ago, I dutifully signed up to volunteer. By the end of the first day, I discovered I didn’t have enough energy to keep up with the group of fourth graders to which I was assigned for an entire week. The games, the singing, the hand motions, the crafts, the science experiments, the bathroom breaks…it was just too much. It took two full weeks following VBS to recover from the week of VBS.So this year I said, “Can I donate snacks, instead?”The director told me to bring seven boxes of ice cream sandwiches and that was the end of that. Well, I’ve also provided three teenage volunteers. Doesn’t that count for something?In any case, I have to confess something else about this VBS week:Coming home to a quiet house after dropping everyone off and then sitting by myself on the porch to pray without interruption? Dreamy.Nothing louder than the ding of the electric kettle, the smooth sound of water pouring, and the light clatter of a ceramic lid settling into place as I brew a pot of tea? Bliss.Reading a book, writing a blog post, eating an early lunch alone? Positively playful.Learning: Clearly, I’m an introvert. But I’m not really learning that; merely confirming it.On a completely different note, according to Richard J. Maybury, the wage/price spiral is apparently not an accurate explanation for what causes inflation. “The wage/price spiral sounds logical, but…[t]he only way for all wages and prices to go up is for someone to print money” (Maybury 44).Reacting: Remember how I said I’d be going to a doctor about my cough? Well, I tried to make an appointment with a doctor who came highly recommended. When I phoned, the receptionist said she’s not taking any new patients. I considered trying to sway her by pointing out that I only go to the doctor once every three or four years and thus wouldn’t overly burden their system. Instead, I simply said goodbye and hung up.I ended up phoning the place I went two or three years ago when I had the flu. The same doctor I saw briefly that winter had an opening on Friday. I took it.The doctor wore a brightly colored peasant skirt and fuchsia lipstick to match one of the colors in the flowy fabric. Her bangs sort of fell across her eyes and she occasionally pushed them aside when she studied my chart or spoke directly to me. I found this all a little distracting, but she listened to my lungs and asked relevant questions.She ordered a chest X-ray, and I’m happy to report that whatever this respiratory thing is, it’s not pneumonia.But I still have the cough.I’m tired of making whistling, crackling sounds when I breathe deeply. I’m bummed that I can’t react to a joke without the laughter morphing into a wheezing hack. I’m sick of going on a jog and stopping every two- to four-hundred yards to cough for twenty seconds.A friend gave me a link to a natural product to try. I started to order it but hesitated, deciding to wait and see what would happen at the doctor’s office. Also, I was afraid to take something that might not marry well with whatever the doctor ordered. I may live to regret this hesitation if the cough persists.Writing: I wrote this post and several others throughout the week. And I’ve written personal journal entries. But I’ve also been dragging up childhood memories and crafting them into stories for you. Here’s one for today:One of my closest friends in high school was granted the freedom to decorate her bedroom however she wished, and she covered the painted walls with posters.I envied her freedom.My dad forbid me to hang anything on my bedroom walls, especially with tape, because the adhesive would damage the vintage wallpaper.He was absolutely right. The cute flowered wallpaper (pictured left) would never survive my collection of The Police and Sting posters. Any tape would have pulled up bits of the wallpaper or left tacky residue behind.So I had to satisfy myself with the art that my parents selected for me. They hung on my wall a framed print of Greyfriars Bobby and, under that, the poem “Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep,” which had the opposite effect that it probably intended (each night revisiting the possibility of dying before waking left me rather troubled):

Now I lay me down to sleep,I pray the Lord my soul to keep.If I should die before I wake,I pray the Lord my soul to take.

Also, it included a second stanza:

Now I get me up to workI pray the Lord I will not shirk.If I should die before the night,I pray the Lord my work’s all right.

Anyway, one day, in a moment of rash teenage rebellion, I grabbed a thumbtack and unrolled one of my posters—can’t remember which one—and poked the tack through the top-center of the poster. Then, I zeroed in on the black-dot-center of one of the flowers.And I pressed it in.Voila. A poster on my wall, without a single strip of tape.There you have it: A Curiosity Journal that reveals what I’m reading, playing, learning, reacting to and writing.

Works Cited:

Hailey, Kendall. The Day I Became an Autodidact: and the advice, adventures, and acrimonies that befell me thereafter. New York: Dell Publishing, 1988. Print.

Maybury, Richard J. Whatever Happened to Penny Candy? A fast, clear, and fun explanation of the economics you need for success in your career, business, and investments (fifth edition). Placerville, CA: Bluestocking Press, 2004. Print.

The post Curiosity Journal: 6-15-11 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

:::

Some of you have mentioned that you may begin posting a Curiosity Journal, as well. Be sure to let me know if you do.Reading: Sophie’s World has been set aside during this spring season filled with school programs, paper-grading, projects, open houses, graduations, showers, soccer matches, and mulch.In the mornings, I manage to read the selection from the One-Year Bible (the translation I’m using this year is ESV), My Utmost for His Highest, and often a small chapter in The Imitation of Christ. From MUFHH today:

Jesus said there is only one way to develop and grow spiritually, and that is through focusing and concentrating on God…The people who influence us most are not those who buttonhole us and talk to us, but those who live their lives like the stars in the sky and “the lilies of the field”— simply and unaffectedly. Those are the lives that mold and shape us. (May 18, My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers)

Playing: While grading papers and organizing my desk today, I’m playing music: Pandora Radio’s Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart channel.Learning: Tuesday evening, I sat in on my daughters’ debate club, a low-key weekly meeting led by an accomplished high school debate student who speaks a mile a minute. The training is in policy debate and its format is explained well at this blog post. The young man’s debate experience has been through an organization that sets the topic for the year. This school year’s debate policy resolution: “Resolved: That the United States Federal Government should significantly reform its policy toward Russia.”Given that I know nothing about debate procedure and very little about U.S. policies toward Russia, I was lost. But I was proud of my daughters for attending week after week. They learned the basics of debate and a little bit about Russia. I’m sure it helped that the instructor’s mother brought pizza each week. I mean, wouldn’t you be willing to research the New START Treaty if you were promised free pizza?Reacting: I’m relieved I don’t have to practice debate. And that’s all I have to say about that.Writing: When I’m not slinging mulch, I’m planning a high school composition class for the 2011-12 school year that will focus on essay and research writing. We only meet once a week, so the students need instructive materials to refer to as they work on assignments at home—and I need an organized teacher’s manual. I’m researching, reading, writing, and piecing it all together.I’m curious to hear what valuable writing skills you learned (or wish you’d learned) to prepare you both for high school and college writing assignments? Care to offer some advice and inspiration as I prep?There you have it: A Curiosity Journal that reveals what I’m reading, playing, learning, reacting to and writing.

Questioned Proposal photo by Ethan Lofton. Resourced through Flickr.com. All other photos by Ann Kroeker.

The post Curiosity Journal: May 18, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Reading:

Playing:

Image Credits: All photos by Ann Kroeker.

The post Curiosity Journal: April 27, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

When I read Ray Bradbury as a kid, I wrote like Ray Bradbury—everything green and wondrous and seen through a lens smeared with the grease of nostalgia. When I read James M. Cain, everything I wrote came out clipped and stripped and hard-boiled… This sort of stylistic blending is a necessary part of developing one’s own style, but it doesn’t occur in a vacuum. You have to read widely, constantly refining (and redefining) your own work as you do. (King 141, 142)

He recommends that every writer work in a writing room. It can be quite humble—in his younger years, he wrote in the laundry room of a double-wide trailer—but it needs one thing: a door you are willing to shut. “The closed door is your way of telling the world and yourself that you mean business” (King 151). Playing: We took long walks along the beach following in each other’s Ministry of Silly Walks footsteps, pausing to draw pictures in the sand.Learning: Carrabelle Beach was a training ground for D-Day, a sobering reality of this area’s history.  Reacting: I know this is a trite and immature response to King’s book, but I’ve been gnawing on his advice to have a writing room with a door that can close.I write from a desk in the middle of our most highly trafficked room. As I composed this blog post, for example, my son ran up and asked three questions before telling a long story; my youngest daughter practiced piano about two feet away from my chair; and after that, my second daughter stuck in a Beatles CD and cranked up the volume to enjoy “Yellow Submarine” while she worked on Algebra. It might be quieter to pack up my things and drive to a food court at the mall or set up my laptop at the nearest airport terminal.How I long for a writing room with a door that can close!My husband and I thought through each room of the house, and there simply isn’t a nook, closet or room that we can convert to writing space. So I tap away at the keyboard while “Hello, Goodbye” plays in the background. Oh, and here comes my son with another question.Writing: I discussed some of my writing ideas with my husband while we rolled up I-65 North on our way home. I hope to make progress on sample chapters and a proposal for a possible book. It feels good to have some vision and a burst of writing energy as we head into spring. Oh, did I mention that we camped near Apalachicola National Forest and Tate’s Hell State Forest, both of which are inhabited by Florida black bears?There you have it. A Curiosity Journal that reveals what I’m reading, playing, learning, reacting to and writing.

Work Cited:King, Stephen. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. New York: Pocket Books, a div. of Simon & Schuster, Inc., 2000. Print.

Image Credits: Beach with trees, tree frog, and hermit crab photos taken by S. Kroeker. All others taken by Ann Kroeker.

The post Curiosity Journal: April 6, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

I approached a tiny vegetable stall with one Italian woman and her son selling a choice assortment of their produce—such as rich, almost algae-green leaves of spinach, tomatoes so red and bloody they looked like cow’s organs, and champagne-colored grapes with skins as tight as a show-girl’s leotard. (Gilbert 122)

I’ve never seen a show-girl’s leotard, yet I can see those grapes.

And my Italian—which has been getting better, honestly—fails me in such stressful circumstances. As I try to speak logically about my missing box of books, the woman looks at me like I’m blowing spit bubbles. (Gilbert 147)

Love the postal worker’s apathy and condescension as she listens to Gilbert’s infantile Italian. “[L]ike I’m blowing spit bubbles.” Brilliant.

[This teenage Indian boy] dressed the way the computer-interested boys in my junior high school used to dress for band concerts—dark trousers and an ironed white button-down shirt that was far too big for him, his thin, stemlike neck sticking out of the opening like a single daisy popping out of a giant flowerpot. (Gilbert 242)

The computer-interested junior high band kids and the single daisy popping out of a flowerpot. Yes, yes! I see it, Elizabeth! Such great description. Makes me want to toss similes into every paragraph like a young cook discovering how effective an ingredient like garlic or nutmeg is in a particular dish will begin tossing it into every recipe. Will it improve the flavor? Maybe. Maybe not. But to experiment is to learn. Playing: Monday night I played Scrabble with my husband and two of the kids. I won. Afterward I thought maybe I should have let one of the kids have it or even my husband, who grew up in Francophone Belgium speaking conversational English (read: limited vocabulary) only with his family. For him to win at Scrabble would be momentous.But when I could saw a chance to make “F-O-R-U-M” end on a triple word square, I couldn’t resist. We were down to the last few tiles when I scored big. No one could catch me.After we packed up Scrabble, someone pulled out Scrabble Flash, an electronic word-scramble speed game. Our middle daughter won. The Belgian-born guy for whom English is technically his second language came in second. I was honestly trying, but lost.Learning: Gilbert passes along some fascinating historical tidbits in Eat, Pray, Love. One that particularly intrigued me was her explanation of how the Italian language came to be.Europe, she said, was “once a pandemonium of numberless Latin derived dialects that gradually, over the centuries, morphed into a few separate languages—French, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian. What happened in France, Portugal, and Spain was organic…The strongest city ultimately determined the language of the whole country.”Italy, however, wasn’t a country; rather, it was “a peninsula of warring city-states dominated by princes or powers.” Local dialects abounded so much that “[a] scientist in Florence could barely communicate with a poet in Sicily or a merchant in Venice.”In the 1500s, Gilbert explains, some Italian intellectuals decided Italian would be the dialect they deemed most beautiful. The winner: that of the poet Dante. To write Divine Comedy, Dante had picked up the vernacular of Florence and shaped it as he worked. “The Italian we speak today,” Gilbert concluded, “is not Roman or Venetian, nor even really entirely Florentine. Essentially it is Dantean. No other European language has had such pedigree.” (excerpts from pages 84-88)Reacting: Gilbert’s book has me thinking how important it is to analyze and grasp an author’s (or, in fiction, a character’s) world view/theology/philosophy of life; however, I don’t know that I could summarize Gilbert’s, as she often has another character in her book voice statements of belief (leaving me unsure whether she believes it herself). Writing: People have asked me what I’m working on these days. One book concept keeps jumping in front of me, waving energetically. “Hey, Ann! How about me? I’m full of possibility!” But I can’t seem to get this feisty idea to sit still long enough to figure out the best expression were the idea to take form. A solid proposal is needed that would describe this book’s content and approach, but just when I get to thinking it through, the idea skips away after announcing itself, like a street urchin scrambling down an alley and out of reach.Until I solidify any book plans, I’ll write simile-smeared blog posts much as a Kindergarten kid who has discovered that blue and yellow swirled together make green proceeds to coat her paper with experimental blobs and streaks.There you have it. A Curiosity Journal that reveals what I’m reading, playing, learning, reacting to and writing.

Work Cited:Gilbert, Elizabeth. Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything across Italy, India and Indonesia. New York: Thomson Gale Press (large print edition), 2006. Print.

The post Curiosity Journal: March 30, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

After a tragic banquet-hall collapse, of which he was the sole survivor, Simonides was asked to give an account of who was buried in the debris. When the poet closed his eyes and reconstructed the crumbled building in his imagination, he had an extraordinary realization: he remembered where each of the guests at the ill-fated dinner had been sitting. Even though he made no conscious effort to memorize the layout of the room, it nonetheless left a durable impression. From that simple observation, Simonides reportedly invented a technique that would form the basis of what came to be known as the art of memory. He realized that if there hadn’t been guests sitting at a banquet table but, say, every great Greek dramatist seated in order of birth — or each of the words of one of his poems or every item he needed to accomplish that day — he would have remembered that instead. He reasoned that just about anything could be imprinted upon our memories, and kept in good order, simply by constructing a building in the imagination and filling it with imagery of what needed to be recalled. This imagined edifice could then be walked through at any time in the future. Such a building would later come to be called a memory palace.

A memory palace! That’s what I need—an imaginary palace in which I can store the treasures of Scripture or the names of people I meet. But…a palace? I don’t know the layout of any palaces to use for my memory work.Not to worry! The author clarifies that these so-called “memory palaces” don’t need to be palatial; in fact, they don’t even need to be buildings. “They can be routes through a town or signs of the zodiac or even mythical creatures,” he says. “They can be big or small, indoors or outdoors, real or imaginary, so long as they are intimately familiar.”It could be, therefore, a building such as my childhood or current home, or a path such as my standard running route. I suppose it could even be the layout of my favorite grocery store.In that “palace,” I would paint scenes within its rooms and along its hallways, each scene “so unlike any other it cannot be forgotten.” I personally don’t have the goal to memorize material quickly, like the author did, but I would like to do it accurately. The author stated that many competitive “mnemonists” who enter speed memory contests claim that “their skills are less a feat of memory than of creativity.”He explains:

[O]ne of the most popular techniques used to memorize playing cards involves associating every card with an image of a celebrity performing some sort of a ludicrous — and therefore memorable — action on a mundane object. When it comes time to remember the order of a series of cards, those memorized images are shuffled and recombined to form new and unforgettable scenes in the mind’s eye. Using this technique, Ed Cooke showed me how an entire deck can be quickly transformed into a comically surreal, and unforgettable, memory palace.

The author is a bit crass in developing memorable images to help him make connections, but he practiced a lot and became a memory champion. I wonder if I could employ the basic ideas—without the crudeness—to improve my ability to memorize Scripture or names?Reacting: Gas prices may be soaring to $4/gallon in the months ahead. This has me thinking about our weekly schedule and driving habits, wondering if we should plan ahead and simplify in any way.Also, another study exploring the health effects of low-level radiation emitted from cell phones is “among the first and largest to document that the weak radio-frequency signals from cellphones have the potential to alter brain activity.” I recall the conversation I had  yesterday with a friend, chatting by cell phone. I had that gadget pressed against my head for half an hour or more. New resolve: locate my earpiece and use it!Writing: I’ve been working on four messages for a women’s retreat (March 4-6). It’s such a different process, writing something to be delivered by voice instead of the page or screen; but I’m looking forward to a weekend with a lovely group of ladies!There you have it. A Curiosity Journal that reveals what I’m reading, playing, learning, reacting to and writing.

Credit: Palace of Versailles image by Aaron White. Used under Creative Commons license via Flickr.

The post Curiosity Journal: Feb 23, 2011 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

• Progress Report #1
• Progress Report #2
• Progress Report #3

Each Progress Report is an opportunity to encourage one another along the way and celebrate our progress.How are you doing? Has it come easily or are you facing struggles?Check in using Linky Tools if you write a Progress Report on your own blog (you can link up any time during the week).Or just talk to us in the comments.[Linky Tools is shutting down, so have to add this]

Ann’s Progress (or lack thereof)I was hanging out with Charity this weekend, and as each of us shared our sorry progress, I realized with frustration that I couldn’t recite anything to her without reviewing first.This morning, on the way to church, I could only barely pull up the most familiar verses, which for me are the last few because of my last-verse-first approach.So I’ll be cramming this week. Oh, yes, I’ll be reviewing like crazy to see if I can get it in before next Monday.I’m not going to bother trying to type it out, as it will be an epic fail.One of my favorite verses of all time is in this passage, however, and I can recite it by heart:

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

And it serves as a reminder that remaining in Jesus is key to bearing fruit, even in locking in these memory verses.By the way, I looked up John 15:5 in Bible Gateway online, to check my work, and I gasped because I thought I had that wrong. This is what Bible Gateway’s NIV translation of John 15:5 is bringing up: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” But when I look it up in a print copy here at home, it is the same as I memorized it years ago (see above). What’s happening? Did Bible Gateway get it wrong? Is the NIV changing its translation of that passage (and others), updating for some reason?

The post MMM 2011 Progress Report #4 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

It’s not too late to join Mega Memory Month (MMM).Check out details at MMM Headquarters (additional buttons available)!

The post MMM 2011 Progress Report #2 appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome—though we love to try new dishes, your post doesn’t have to be a recipe.If you want, you could join the book club at TheHighCalling.org and post your responses to the essays in The Spirit of Food; because, you see, we’re pretty relaxed over here. Posts like that are as welcome as menus and recipes.When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post. It ties us together visually.Then link your post using Linky Tools.

Food on Fridays with Ann

For the next few weeks, the Book Club at TheHighCalling.org (THC) is dipping into The Spirit of Food: 34 Writers on Feasting and Fasting toward God, edited by Leslie Leyland Fields.I’ll be joining that discussion, posting at least one response to the reading right here as part of Food on Fridays. It’s a way to write in community with you all regarding food in general and with my friends at THC, when I link up to book club on Mondays.If you’re curious to see how the THC book club works, you can visit our discussion of the first five essays at “What the Earth Gives,” which went live last Monday.This coming Monday, we’ll be discussing the next four essays:

1. “The Heavenly Onion,” by Fr. Robert Farrar Capon (recipe: Scrap Soups and White Stock)
2. “A Way of Loving,” by Stephen and Karen Baldwin (recipe: Basic Pasta)
3. “Go Feed People,” by R. Gary LeBlanc (recipe: Jacmel Jambalaya)
4. “And She Took Flour: Cooking Lessons from Supper of the Lamb,” by Denise Frame Harlan (recipes: I. City Slicker’s First Pot Pie; II. Advanced Real Pot Pie)

I decided to do more than read “The Heavenly Onion.” I decided to live it.

In this excerpt from The Supper of the Lamb, Robert Farrar Capon invites the reader to take an onion (he recommends a yellow onion, but I ended up with a white onion), a paring knife and a cutting board, and sit down at the kitchen table.

I was to acquaint myself with the onion.

Hello, onion.

Yes, it was just me and the onion; the onion and me. Together at the kitchen table.

An occasional child passed through.

“What are you doing with that onion?” one asked.

“I’m getting to know it,” I replied.

The child shrugged and moved on. My kids are used to seeing their mom undertake various experiments for the sake of books, blogs, or just basic curiosity.

So they left me alone to look at my onion as if I’d never seen an onion before. I was to meet it on its own terms—to abandon all of my preconceived notions of what an onion is.

First, I was to notice its two ends: the end where root filaments descended into the earth.

And the upper end, the part that pushes up, defying gravity, seeking light.

Contrary to my preconceived notions, Capon is quick to point out, an onion is not the simple sphere. It is linear, “a bloom of vectors thrusting upward from base to tip.”

With Capon’s encouragement, I’m trying to be generous toward the onion, devoting this kind of time to it; because you see, I’m not all that fond of onions. I can’t digest onions very well. I won’t elaborate, but let’s just say they disagree with me.

But Capon didn’t ask me to eat the onion.

He asked me to see it. Smell it. Examine it.

That, I’m willing to do.

Remove the skins carefully, he instructed. Just the skins. The main pieces come off easily.

The skin is thin, brittle and dry; yet, to borrow Capon’s description, elegant.

Well, except for the little bits that pull off stubbornly. Capon sees incredible beauty in them, but they look a little flimsy and scrappy to me.

I feel them: delicate, but smooth.

I’m still game. I want to see and learn, so I continue.

Next: the cut.

I got a chef’s knife for Christmas, so the cut is fun.

And look at what I’ve done.

He says, “You have opened the floodgates of being…Structurally, the onion is not a ball, but a nested set of fingers within fingers.”

What elegant, fluid lines curve and meet at the top.

Moisture glistens on the cut surface and drips at the base onto the cutting board. “You have cut open no inanimate thing,” Capon says, “but a living tumescent being…the pieces of its being in compression. To prove it, try to fit the two halves of the onion back together.”

“It cannot be done,” he continues. “The faces which began as two plane surfaces…are now mutually convex, and rock against each other.”

He’s right. I can’t push them flat together again. Released from its pressure chamber, the onion is swollen—expanded. There is no turning back.

Next I am to lift out, one by one, the layers.

I line them up, and just as Capon says they will, they look something like Russian church spires.

Or tongues of fire.

They seem firm and solid. If I tap the curve with the flat of my knife, it offers a hollow sound, “something between a tock and a tunk,” as Capon says. I am told to take one of these pieces and slice it into slivers.

Pressing and smooshing out the juice from one of the slivers, I see that the onion is, well, limp. Depleted.

Empty. Finished.

“The flesh, so crisp and solid, turns out to have been an aqueous house of cards…the whole infolded nest of flames was a blaze of water.”

That is the onion, its shapely figure admired, sliced, emptied and better understood; perhaps even appreciated.

I have smelled it (still smell it, in fact, on my fingertips where I pressed liquid from the sliver with my nails). And I have seen that it is different from what I thought. It is more than I thought. I have paid attention, for the most part, and Capon has shown me that I can take more time to “look at the things of the world and to love them for what they are.”

It’s easy to look at an onion and say, “Oh, sure. I know what that is. It’s a round thing.” It takes attention to look at an onion and see it for what it is and, in some way, love it for what it is.

God saw the onion, along with all that He made, and it was very good.

Why don’t I take a closer look and see all that He made?

I have seen one real thing, made by the Creator alone.

And it was very good.

_______________

Source:The Spirit of Food: 34 Writers on Feasting and Fasting Toward God, edited by Leslie Leyland Fields. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books. 2010. (pages 46–54)

Photos by Ann Kroeker

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She has completed all of the practice assignments and seems to understand it all.

I asked her at dinner this evening what was the most fun she had today.

She answered, “Learning CSS. And designing a clubhouse for the back yard.”

Thirteen.

What a great age.

“climbing trees” photo © 2011 by Sophie Marie Creative. Used with permission.

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(I make my own buttons. Can you tell? Smaller version and html code available below)

It’s back and bigger than ever:

Mega Memory Month 2011!

As we launch the new year, we’re also launching Mega Memory Month 2011.Mega Memory Month (MMM) began back in 2008, when I invited people to join me in a month-long memorization extravaganza. Over the years I’ve hosted MMM during the months of January, June and October; but I’ve concluded that the best time to undertake a mega memory project is in January, when resolve is high and few holidays distract us from our goals.So here we are: January 2011 is just days away.What would you like to hide in your heart?Take the next few days to pray, plan and prepare. Then launch your memory project on Saturday, January 1, 2011 (detailed instructions below).

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing…If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. (John 15:5, 7-8, emphasis mine)

Mega Memory Month Participants:

Here’s how to participate:

1. Pick something you’d like to memorize. Something long. Something formidable. Something Mega. (Mega to you may not be mega to me–simply challenge yourself relative to what you’ve tackled in the past.) You could select a passage of Scripture, a poem, a classic hymn and/or a famous speech. It’s up to you.
2. Announce it on your blog whenever you like.
3. Return to this post to link up, talking about how you’re going to take the challenge and participate in the Mega Memory Month carnival. Facebook users can interact at the MMM 2011 FB headquarters.
4. Mega Memory Month Progress Reports. On Mondays (because it offers the best alliteration), I’ll write a Mega Memory Month Progress Report. Chime in with your own progress report that day (or any time during the week) in the comments or link to your own MMM Progress Report post. That way we can visit and encourage each other.
5. Share memory techniques you’re using, so we can borrow ideas that work. Click here for a list of memorization tips and techniques I’ve collected and here for a great resource someone else has compiled.
6. Final Celebration! By the end of the month, present a creative culmination of your work (ideas: a video of you–and your family, if they’re participating–reciting it by heart; write it out by hand and take a photo; type it up on the blog).

Join me?

Don’t want to post a brain coral button on your blog? Here’s an alternative:

And…a little one with the “splat” motif.

Large Brain Coral button html code:<p style=”text-align: center;”><a href=”https://annkroeker.com/” target=”_blank”><img title=”MMM2010″ src=”https://annkroeker.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/MMM2010-300×214.jpg” alt=”” width=”300″ height=”214″ /></a></p>Small Brain Coral button html code:<p style=”text-align: center;”><strong><strong> <a href=”https://annkroeker.com/”><img title=”MMM2010small” src=”https://annkroeker.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/MMM2010small.jpg” alt=”” width=”200″ height=”166″ /></a></strong></strong></p>Large Splat button html code:<p style=”text-align: center;”><strong><strong><a href=”https://annkroeker.com/”><img title=”mmmsplat2″ src=”https://annkroeker.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/mmmsplat2-300×214.jpg” alt=”” width=”300″ height=”214″ /></a></strong></strong></p>Small Splat button html code:<p style=”text-align: center;”><a href=”https://annkroeker.com/”><img title=”mmmsplat2011small” src=”https://annkroeker.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/mmmsplat2011small.jpg” alt=”” width=”200″ height=”143″ /></a></p>

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While sorting books, I came across Debra Bell‘s The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling and starting thinking about vocabulary and vocabulary building as it relates to communication, education, writing and editing.

The following section, taken from page 23, fascinates me:

Care to hazard a guess as to the sources of each of these vocabulary lists?

LIST 1

• aggression
• divergent
• prestigious
• bizarre
• cogent
• propagate
• ambiguous
• exonerated

LIST 2

• inimitable
• epistolary
• assailed
• invidious
• assiduous
• appendages
• sagacity
• pecuniary

SOURCES:

List 1: SAT I (revised) Practice Test

List 2: Fourth-grade McGuffey Reader, in use during the late 1800s (after compulsory education was mandated). An 1897 fifth-grade reader we purchased at a library sale includes the same literary selections I studied in my undergraduate American literature courses. (Bell 23)

I showed the lists to my 12-year-old daughter. She read them both and chuckled. “I told you not to read the sources,” I said.

“I didn’t,” she assured me. “I just thought it was interesting how much harder the words were on List 2 than on List 1.”

I pointed at the sources. “Check it out.”

She read them. “Wow! So a fourth grader back in the 1800s knew harder words than someone studying for the SAT today who is maybe 16 or 17 years old?”

“I guess teachers just expected more from their students back then.” As I said that, I blushed. I’m not 100 percent certain what all those words mean, and I’m a bit older than a 16-year-old studying for the SAT. And I home educate.

Makes me want to expand my personal lexicon. How about you? If you want to launch a vocabulary building plan, join me as I experiment with some of these simple ways to learn new words:

• Wordsmith.Org.  A.Word.A.Day     http://wordsmith.org/awad/index.html
• Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/mwwod.pl
• Oxford English Dictionary http://www.oed.com/cgi/display/wotd
• New York Times, Word of the Day http://www.nytimes.com/learning/students/wordofday/
• Vocabulary.com: http://www.vocabulary.com/ 
• Word Think  http://www.wordthink.com/
• Play Free Rice.
• Read books, read challenging magazines (think The Economist rather than People), and then read more books.
• Keep a record of words learned, whether a journal, note cards, loose leaf pages in a 3-ring binder, OneNote, or a Word document. I plan to include with the word and definition a sample sentence using the word in context (I’ll copy the example from the dictionary or the sentence from the text where I found it).
• Review suffixes, prefixes and roots (found a game). Lots of sources for this.
• Review personal word bank often.
• Assiduously incorporate new words into blog posts, conversations, e-mails, and journal entries.

Work cited: Bell, Debra. Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling. Nashville, TN: Tommy Nelson, 1997. Print.

Photo: “word up! c-o-f-f-e-e…” by Debaird, available for download from Flickr through a Creative Commons license.

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(smaller button below)

Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome—though we love to try new dishes, your post doesn’t have to be a recipe. If you just want to record your daughter singing, “I like apples and bananas,” that’ll do just fine.When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post and join us through Mr. Linky.Here’s a Mr. Linky tutorial:

Write up a post, publish, then return here and click on Mr. Linky below. A screen will pop up where you can type in your blog name and paste in the url to your own Food on Fridays post (give us the exact link to your Food on Fridays page, not just the link to your blog).You can also visit other people’s posts by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking participants’ names–you should be taken straight to their posts.Please note: I’ll do my best to update this post by hand. In the meantime, please click on the Mister Linky logo to view the complete list.

Food on Fridays Participants

Food on Fridays with AnnAt the farmer’s market last Saturday, I bought “living lettuce.”Until that moment, I never gave much thought to the fact that cut lettuce or any vegetable that’s picked is dying. But I guess once it’s cut off from its source of nutrients, it’s the beginning of the end, which is why we should try to eat fresh-picked fruits and vegetables to enjoy peak flavor and nutrition.You can’t get much more fresh-picked than plucking a leaf from a head of living lettuce and immediately eating it.How does it work?The fellow selling this lettuce grows it hydroponically, allowing him to sell it long after conventionally grown lettuce is out of season. The roots are still attached and he says this lettuce is living until the moment I use it.In fact, he says if the roots stay moist, this head of lettuce will stay perfectly fresh—and alive—for four weeks. And one source online claimed there’s no use for pesticides or herbicides on lettuce grown hydroponically. Intrigued? This video explained how to select, store, clean and use living lettuce (her example is butter lettuce—pictured above is green leaf).Here’s how one guy grew it on a really small scale.Here’s a more involved set-up a guy created:[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhAferKRXh4]Here’s how to grow it on a really, really large scale:[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHBhyqowSEc]

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(smaller button below)

Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome—though we love to try new dishes, your post doesn’t have to be a recipe. If you just want to list your three favorite cookbooks, that’ll do just fine.When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post and join us through Mr. Linky.Here’s a Mr. Linky tutorial:

Write up a post, publish, then return here and click on Mr. Linky below. A screen will pop up where you can type in your blog name and paste in the url to your own Food on Fridays post (give us the exact link to your Food on Fridays page, not just the link to your blog).You can also visit other people’s posts by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking participants’ names–you should be taken straight to their posts.Please note: I’ll do my best to update this post by hand. In the meantime, please click on the Mister Linky logo to view the complete list.

Food on Fridays Participants

Food on Fridays with AnnI had almost everything on hand to make Curried Chickpea Soup, a recipe that Breastfeeding Moms Unite included in last week’s carnival.So I tried making it, with modifications. I’ve annotated the recipe below.The biggest change was that I had to make a much smaller amount, but was too lazy to do any math. I also kept skipping over ingredients and then going back and adding things later. It got better and better. By the time I was done, this soup tasted so different from anything I’ve ever eaten and was so delicious, I wanted to cry. I ate three servings right away. Couldn’t stop myself.Curried Chick Pea Soup

• 8 cups vegetable broth (I used one can)
• 2 Tbsp olive oil (probably less, but I rarely measure olive oil)
• 1 yellow onion, finely diced (I used a tiny bit of onion—too much and I have digestive issues)
• 2 tsp salt (much less)
• 2 bay leaves
• 8 garlic cloves (Whoa! That’s a lot of garlic. I used one clove in the mincer)
• 3 Tbsp minced ginger (Forgot the ginger—added a little bit upon reheating, but it was delicious without)
• 2 jalapeño peppers, seeded (Didn’t have these and can’t stand the heat; used part of a green bell pepper)
• 1 red pepper (I had part of one)
• 6 ripe tomatoes (I had one big one)
• 1 tsp cumin seed (I had some ground cumin)
• 1 tsp coriander seed (Didn’t have this)
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp garam masala (I didn’t have this, either)
• 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1/8 tsp turmeric (I happened to have some of this)
• 3 cups canned/cooked chickpeas (I only used one can, which is why I had to monkey with the amounts of everything else)
• 1/4 cup prepared mango chutney (just a bit of Major Grey Chutney and once blended added sooo much to the flavor, wow)
• 1/2 can coconut milk (used almost this much, even though I made such a small amount of soup overall—gooooooood)
• 1/2 bunch cilantro, minced (Obviously just a sprig for the smaller amoung, but yum!)

Directions:Heat the oil in a soup pot and add onion, 1 tsp salt and bay leaves. Sauté until onions are soft and golden. Meanwhile., places the garlic, ginger, peppers, and tomatoes in a food processor and pulse until the vegetables form a rough purée. Set aside. Note: What makes this soup so good is the purée!Next, grind the cumin and coriander seeds. Add these and all remaining spices to the sautéed onions and continue cooking and stirring for 5 minutes. Add the vegetable purée and another tsp of salt and simmer until blobs of oil pool on the surface. Add the chick peas and vegetable broth and bring to a simmer. Cook several minutes, then add the chutney and coconut milk. Using a potato masher, gently mash the chick peas against the bottom of the pot to break them up slightly and thicken the soup. If this is something you don’t care about, don’t do it, as mashing the chick peas will cause their skins to come off, which many folks, including me and my kids don’t care for on their own. Simmer and season to taste with salt and cracked pepper. Add chopped cilantro just before serving.Serve with warm whole wheat chapati or pita bread and a salad.(Or just eat three bowls in a row without worrying about sides, because this is now what you crave more than chocolate.)

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Ann’s Ambitious Summer Reading List

I’ve updated the list with the strike-through feature indicating books that I’ve finished reading.

• The Help, by Kathryn Stockett.
• Death by Suburb, by David L. Goetz. Both this book and The Help were recommended to me by multiple people. I decided to pay attention and picked up both, placing them top of the list.
• The Right to Write, by Julia Cameron. This is the High Calling Blogs current book club selection, so I’m working through it, though I’ve only posted about it once.
• Saint Francis, by Nikos Kazantzakis. The only reason this is on the list is because I borrowed it from a friend and need to return it.
• Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe. I need to read this quickly to be ready for a book club discussion I was invited to join.
• Sophie’s World: A Novel About the History of Philosophy, by Jostein Gaarder. One of my sisters-in-law has her doctorate in philosophy. I asked what I might read to get an overview of philosophy, since I know so little—I needed something accessible and interesting. This was her suggestion.
• Total Truth, by Nancy Pearcey. This book comes highly recommended by a worldview instructor I admire. She said this is the one to read if I only read one book about developing a Christian world view.
• The Universe Next Door, by James W. Sire. But I decided to read more than one book on developing a Christian world view, so I’m going to attempt to read this one, too.
• Green Mama, by Tracey Bianchi. Tracey’s stopping by NotSoFastBook.com next week on her blog tour with a guest post, so stay tuned!
• Barbies at Communion, by Marcus Goodyear. My High Calling Blogs colleague (actually, he’s my boss’s boss) has come out with a book of poetry. Be sure to click on the link just to see the cover art.
• God in the Yard, by L.L. Barkat, the same High Calling Blogs colleague (actually, she’s my boss) who recommended I generate this list. God in the Yard is a twelve-week course inviting readers into the days and nights of her daily outdoor solitude.
• Let the Crow’s Feet and Laugh Lines Come, by Dena Dyer, yet another High Calling Blogs colleague with a new book release!
• Miscellaneous. I’m facilitating a writing course in the fall, so I’ll be looking through stacks of material to evaluate what might work well for the students. I’ll be skimming many writing, grammar and reference books—too many to list. Also, I’m researching some topics for possible books I might write in the future. That process has me flipping through numerous related titles, none of which I will read cover to cover. So they don’t count.

My book stack is eagerly awaiting the arrival of the last three titles on my list, but I have plenty of words to consume in the meantime.What’s on your list? (pssst…there’s no better time than the lazy days of summer to read about slowing down in our fast-paced world.)Related:Ann’s A Summer Booklist: What’s Up On the StackThe Camel’s Summer Reading List Ann’s Ambitious Summer Reading List Glynn’s What I’m Reading this Summer L.L.’s A Sort of Summer Reading List Cheryl’s My Summer Reading List is Getting Out of ControlDan’s 7 Fascinating Books (for your summer reading list)Charity’s Summer is Time for…Reading?Heather’s Summer ReadingCheck in at High Calling Blogs on Friday for a round-up of summer reading lists, including a long list that Laura Boggess plans to tackle.

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1. Hosting: We’re hosting out-of-country guests for several days–my in-laws from Belgium are here! What a privilege to spend time with them, catching up after a long separation (we only see them every few years).
2. 31 Days Project: Several of my friends at HighCallingBlogs.com (HCB) are participating in a 31 Day to Build a Better Blog project. With guests in town during much of the month, I knew I could never keep up. But one of the assignments was the create a list post, so this is mine. I created a list post over at NotSoFastBook.com, as well. Today’s assignment is to join a forum and participate. HCB serves as my forum.
3. End of School Year: Like many of us, I’m wrapping up the 2009-2010 school year. Wrap-up includes work with our homeschool co-op where I facilitate an American Literature class as well as our work at home. In fact, as soon as I publish this post, I’m grading a stack of papers. In addition, invitations to open houses and graduations are rolling in. May is maxed out.
4. Mini Marathon: I mentioned on Twitter here and here and Facebook that our family (except The Boy) finished the Indy 500 Mini Marathon, the nation’s largest half-marathon. The two older girls walked it; the Belgian Wonder and I “wogged” it with our youngest daughter.
5. Ann Kroeker Facebook page: I set up an Ann Kroeker Facebook page (which is unfortunately known as a “fan” page … please don’t think I’m picturing myself as a celebrity with fans!). It’s just a place where anyone can visit me on Facebook. Feel free to pop by and “like” the page. If you do so, updates I post there will show up in your news feed. You don’ t have to friend me on Facebook to follow my updates. Also, you can post your own links and such right on the Ann Kroeker page, so if you have a “slow-down solution” you’ve found, for example, or if you write a relevant blog post, post it there; the Ann Kroeker page can be a place where we connect on that Not So Fast topic, as well other ideas and themes. I’m just starting to tap into its potential and look forward to developing it when I get through May and enter the freer summer months.
6. To Kill a Mockingbird: The last book of the school year that we’re reading for the co-op is To Kill a Mockingbird. Re-reading it for the fourth time with the students, I find myself reading a chapter, slapping the book shut with satisfaction, and shouting “I love this book!” to anyone who happens to be in the vicinity.
7. Teen Driver: My eldest daughter has been driving on her permit for some time, but this Wednesday she takes her official driving test. The following Tuesday she can take her written test. After that, if all goes well, she gets her operator’s license. Don’t be frightened; she’s a pretty good driver.
8. Camera: I was given the gift of a nice new camera at Christmas—a splurge gift that the Belgian Wonder and I have been discussing for years (but never acted on … until now). I don’t have aspirations of gradually upgrading equipment to professional quality; I’m not even a gifted amateur. But even as an average, everyday photographer, I have really loved learning new things as I happily click away. Photoplay tips from the HCB photo editor Claire Burge have inspired, as well. The results motivate me to try new things and shoot even more snapshots of our daily lives. So I just want to publicly thank my husband and the whole family for blessing me, and I hope my experiments bless the six of us with pleasing visual records of this era of our lives. Ironically, I’m not including a photo of the camera; I tried to take one in the mirror, but it didn’t turn out quite right.
9. Speaking: I spoke at St. Mark’s Methodist Church in Carmel, Indiana, a couple of weeks ago. On the weekend of May 22-23, I’ll be interviewed at Grace Community Church in Noblesville, Indiana, on the topic of families slowing down and simplifying enough to nurture a more contemplative life, seeking and submitting to Christ together.
10. “How can I help?”: My father-in-law grew up in what was then the Belgian Congo (now Democratic Republic of Congo, or DRC). We’re looking forward to hearing stories and seeing pictures from a recent trip to DRC. In his travels throughout the cities of Kinshasa, Kikwit, and out into the rural areas of the Bandundu province, he asked the people, “How can we help?” We will get to hear what the people said when my father-in-law posed the question and listened; we will learn how we can help.

I wonder what the world could be like if we all asked that question and listened carefully to the response? How can we help? We could ask it country to country, church to church, neighbor to neighbor, child to parent—anyone to anyone: “How can I help?” Can we try it today, with someone we love? Can we ask with open minds and hearts … and truly listen?

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If I waited for the perfect conditions to develop my writing life, I’d still be waiting.

Back in the early 1990s, I did manage to explore writing as my work, as a way of life. I wrote and submitted a few magazine articles and met with businesses to launch a career in corporate freelance writing. Then we started our family. Our first three children were born within four years of each other (the fourth came along a few years later).

Consumed by the demands and intensity of young motherhood, I could have shoved my computer screen, pen and notebook into a closet for about twelve years and waited until the conditions were right. I could have waited until my oldest two girls were old enough to babysit the younger two. I could have waited until I had a little office or study or library or nook to call my own. I could have waited until I had long chunks of uninterrupted time.

Instead, I wrote.

I wrote when the kids were napping. I wrote late at night. I wrote in my head when I took them for a walk to the park and scribbled down my ideas when they were eating a snack.

I stole time.

Sometimes I wrote well, but most of what I wrote served as compost, breaking down in my mind, heart, and spirit to feed new and potentially better ideas. Regardless of the quality of what I produced, I wrote. I practiced. I learned.

And I read. With a book tucked in my diaper bag or purse, I could steal a moment now and then to consume some new thought written by authors I respected, whose information I craved, whose ideas would feed the glowing coals of creativity that glimmered softly inside of me as I changed diapers, swept Cheerios and scraped hunks of banana from the high chair tray.

I kept the energy of writing alive during those hectic years, and when the flame flashed, I’d try to grab something on which to write, even if it meant borrowing a crayon and scribble pad that the kids were using for stick-people adventure stories.

This made for a spontaneous, messy writing life. Scraps of paper strewn on the kitchen table or nightstand represented that flash of insight I managed to scratch onto the back of an envelope. Life with newborns and toddlers required tremendous focus and energy, leaving little chance for a regular schedule. I grabbed opportunities when I could, leaving a trail of pens and paper throughout the house and shoved into cup holders in the car.

I identified with other writer-moms, such as Barbara Kingsolver. She would read about rituals of other authors who had seemingly endless time to create the writing mood—hours of photography or flower arranging before sitting at the desk to compose one word. She quoted one author who described his muse at length. Kingsolver, a busy mom with no time for flower-arranging, had to write with the time she was given. She described her own muse:

My muse wears a baseball cap, backward. The minute my daughter is on the school bus, he saunters up behind me with a bat slung over his shoulder and says oh so directly, “Okay, author lady, you’ve got six hours till that bus rolls back up the drive. You can sit down and write, now, or you can think about looking for a day job.” (p. 96, High Tide in Tucson, Barbara Kingsolver)

Kingsolver understands the limitations of motherhood and the challenge of writing in the midst of it. She quotes Lucille Clifton responding to the question “Why are your poems always short?” Ms. Clifton replied, “I have six children, and a memory that can hold about twenty lines until the end of the day.”

Clifton encouraged me to plan out my work mentally while I’m on-the-go, storing up thoughts until the end of the day, when the kids were in bed and the words could spill out.

My kids are much older now; my conditions remain imperfect but are much more conducive to writing. My children are more independent—my oldest has her driver’s permit. But it seems I still have to steal time.

Apparently the conditions for writing will never be perfect.

I need to be reminded of this again and again. Julia Cameron, in The Right to Write says:

The ‘if-I-had-time’ lie is a convenient way to ignore the fact that novels require being written and that writing happens a sentence at a time. Sentences can happen in a moment. Enough stolen moments, enough stolen sentences, and a novel is born–without the luxury of time…

Yes, it is daunting to think of finding time to write an entire novel, but it is not so daunting to think of finding time to write a paragraph, even a sentence. And paragraphs, made of sentences, are what novels are really made of. (p. 14, 15, The Right to Write, Julia Cameron)

This reminds me of a quote I heard at the Festival of Faith & Writing in 2010. Author Parker Palmer said:

If you can’t write a book, write a bunch of essays. If you can’t write a bunch of essays, write a bunch of paragraphs. If you can’t write a bunch of paragraphs, write lines. If you can’t write lines, write some words. And if you can’t write some words, write your truth with your own life, which is far more important than any book. (Parker Palmer at the Festival of Faith & Writing 2010)

Poets, bloggers, novelists, creative nonfiction writers, essayists, letter writers, journalists, composers; we must all get to work. Write a book, essays, paragraphs, lines, or just write a few words, but for heaven’s sake—be sure to write with your life.

No matter what complicates schedules—whether you have a full-time job or you’re a full-time caregiver—write what you can, when you can. Because the conditions are never perfect. 

___________________________________

52 Creative Writing Prompts: A Year of Weekly Prompts and Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

Sure, you can poke around the Internet collecting writing prompts and creative writing exercises.

Or you could buy an ebook that collects them for you in one place.

Convenient.

Inspiring.

Affordable.

Learn more

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At HighCallingBlogs.com today, Bradley J. Moore of Shrinking the Camel explores the question, “When is Negative Feedback Too Negative?” He spotlighted my post “Reward the Good and Ignore the Bad: Does it Work?”

We know that unhealthy criticism for no good reason can demoralize. But how do you point out negative behaviors if you want to develop people, to help them reach their full potential?

I’ve been thinking about this topic quite a bit, and his post generated some additional thoughts that I tapped out as a comment and offer here as food for thought:

On the receiving end of critique:

Many years ago, I attended a small group training session. The leader said that one of the critical steps in gaining valuable input from people in the group was to take them out one-on-one and ask each person, “How can I improve as a leader?” Then he said it’s critical to listen without saying one defensive or explanatory word. Just listen and take notes. The person may say something small at first, to test how you’ll respond. Write down the answer, thank them, and ask, “What else?” Little by little you can get great input for how to improve and build trust with the person in your group, demonstrating that you really care about his or her opinion.

I’ve done this with my kids as well as teams I’ve led (usually volunteers in a church setting). When the person offering input sees that you aren’t going to get angry or fall apart, he can feel free to offer invaluable (if painful) information. And because I invited it, it’s easier for me to take to heart. But it’s hard to hear what I’m doing poorly, as a parent or team leader. And it’s really, really hard not to explain or defend myself; but when I refrain from that and just listen, I can consider the critique and figure out if/how to change. My kids have been grateful to have me ask and know that I’m really listening when they offer some of their concerns.

When giving input/critique:

My eldest daughter has her driver’s permit, and I’ve been thinking about and practicing the positive feedback approach with her. Sometimes, however, for safety reasons I simply have to correct and stop a dangerous move; sometimes I simply cannot “ignore the bad.” But I am making a point to identify things she’s doing well, “rewarding the good” by pointing it out with a compliment.

• Check Tone & Motive: When I have to give some negative input–not just when out driving with my daughter, but with anyone–I’m trying to check my tone and my motive, too. I also try to add some explanation as to why the change would be beneficial. And I try to follow up when I see the person change and affirm them.
• In the Context of Trust, Respect & Love: The clicker training mentioned in my original post could be very superficial and only focus on behavior–it may work well for step-by-step training but not for subtle analysis. (Leslie Leyland Fields expresses her concern with actual programs that promote a clicker-training approach to parenting in her post “Training is Not Enough!!“) With my family and friends, I want to be building relationships and reaching their hearts. I want any input to be in the context of trust, respect and love.
• Praise Sandwich/One-Minute Praise: Erin of Together for Good added this:

Not only am I grateful for Erin’s reminder that God roots out the bad–the sin–and that the good in us is a result of His Spirit’s work and strength, but I also really like her idea of “praise sandwiches.” Kenneth Blanchard’s One-Minute Manager advocates “one-minute praise” as immediate and specific as possible. I should note that he also does advocate immediate and specific “one-minute reprimands” followed with a reassuring handshake that affirms the person is valuable to the organization. Blanchard’s three-step “One-Minute Praise” and four-step “One-Minute Reprimand” processes are summarized HERE.

Any human, young or old, can better hear what needs improvement when it’s sandwiched between or at least followed up with what he or she is doing right.

An Atmosphere of Affirmation

I grew up with a lot of negativity, where nothing I did, not even sweeping grass off the porch, could be done to the satisfaction of one of my parents. I longed to hear something good reinforced, but most of the input I received was criticism. As a result, I developed a skewed image of myself. Developing my identity in that atmosphere of negativity, I couldn’t come close to reaching my full potential; I was plagued with self-doubt and insecurity.

Now, as a mom, I think I’m extra tuned-in to this topic because I really want to figure out what works and how I can offer input that is both loving and beneficial. I want my children to flourish in an environment that is predominately positive. And when I must correct, I want them to hear the truth spoken … in love.

I agree with Erin that none of us is innately “good,” that we are lost without our Savior, and that we must watch out for pride. But I also know firsthand the crippling effects of criticism and negativity.

When I do point out a fault in my kids or offer some criticism or correction, I want to follow up with a hug—the family version of Blanchard’s handshake—so that each child knows he or she is loved no matter what. And as I mentioned above, I want to be open to their own critique of me. If I model gentle, loving correction, perhaps they’ll go easy on me when I ask how they feel I could improve as a parent!

If I’m going to err in a direction, I want it to be in the direction of affirmation and praise.

The post An Atmosphere of Affirmation appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

Not long ago I wrote about Destructive Criticism vs. Healthy Critique when working with writers. The post generated a variety of responses as the conversation continued in the comments.

Shepherdsgrace, for example, had a terrific experience in a writing workshop that included input from the professor and classmates. She explained:

when I was in college I had the audacity, I was a chemistry major through and through, to take a creative writing class…and although an instructor was a fellow student and they all “lived” writing, reading…and were steeped in all things literature…they were very welcoming and friendly to me…I think it was because I was from “outside” their hallowed building, just a curious interloper…they were helpful and gentle at the same time…a little healthy criticism that isn’t couched in petty meanness and caustic barbs will go very far with me…that was one of the funnest classes I ever took…ever…for curious minds, it was a short fiction writing course.

Joyce’s writing workshop experience, however, was quite different from that of shepherdsgrace:

Several years ago I took a university course in creative writing. How I wish that the professor had understood the difference between [Destructive Criticism] and [Healthy Critique]. Not only was he merciless in his comments—written, of course, in red ink on our papers—but he encouraged the class to “critique” each other’s work in the same vein. One student obviously enjoyed this activity and was permitted by the instructor to savage his classmates’ efforts. As a result, many students dropped the class. I continued to the end, but didn’t write another thing for over a year until I had gotten over the experience and realized that the opinions of mean-spirited people really shouldn’t count. That professor has been invited to be the keynote speaker at the awards ceremony for a poetry competition I entered recently. I don’t think I will attend.

LL Barkat described her positive approach when working with writers and other creative types (emphasis mine):

Okay, honestly I don’t believe in critique. I believe in saying what works. Again and again and again. This gets tricky if I’m editing a piece, but even then I want to communicate the idea… hey, if I pulled something out it was only to make sure the good stuff shined the way I knew it could if it was left to itself.

Finally, I’d like to highlight what Gretchen wrote after exploring this topic with others. I’m so grateful she took time to share her findings (I’ve taken the liberty of emphasizing some statements):

I have discussed your post over the last several weeks with colleagues, co-workers, family, and friends.  Many points for discussion—including the definition of criticism vs. critique, sensitivity of an aspect of our lives to the perception of others, and the value of what we hold to be dear.There has been varying degrees of agreement and disagreement with the interpretation of criticism as outlined in your reference of Scribes Alley but all generally agreed that it is how one conveys the tone and character of that analysis which is important and what profoundly affects that memorable experience.I think that it can be argued in evaluating  the merit of a piece or performance, one should not omit the deficits as it can lead to continued weakness with lack of correction concluding with underperformance or the loss of potential of what could be.  In an effort to be “kind” it is really doing no favors.What is true is that no one person wants the “mean girls” to come “knock’n” on your doors of creativity or the things we hold dear.As for the comment that was essentially tasteless ridicule (and lacking in substantial value), I say kick it to the curb and leave it there as I suspect you already have.

Yes, Gretchen, I have indeed kicked to the curb that comment about my poetry—and I appreciate the time you took to explore this topic thoroughly.

All of the comments gave me much to consider, especially as I evaluate the papers of enthusiastic students who are emerging or developing writers. It’s tempting to focus on the mistakes—on what needs to be fixed—and ignore what’s working. I want to applaud what students are doing well so that they can recognize the places where they expressed themselves effectively; yet, I also want to mark errors in hopes of training students to develop good writing habits early on in the same way a piano teacher might correct posture or hand positions.

As Gretchen said, if I omit deficits, students may take much longer to reach their potential. That said, I have been curious to attempt an all-positive approach; or, as LL Barkat described it, “saying what works. Again and again and again.”

Back in 2006 I read an article in The New York Times called “What Shamu Taught Me About Marriage,” by Amy Sutherland. Tired of nagging her husband to change minor habits such as habitually misplacing his keys or leaving used tissues in his wake, Sutherland switched to positive reinforcement. The idea came to her while researching exotic animal trainers and how they could get “hyenas to pirouette on command, cougars to offer their paws for a nail clipping, and baboons to skateboard.” Sutherland wrote:

The central lesson I learned from exotic animal trainers is that I should reward behavior I like and ignore behavior I don’t. After all, you don’t get a sea lion to balance a ball on the end of its nose by nagging. The same goes for the American husband.

She began to thank her husband when he placed just one dirty shirt in the hamper. Meanwhile, she would step over soiled clothes that remained on the floor without saying a word about it—thus rewarding desired behavior and ignoring the rest. As he basked in her gratitude, the piles of soiled clothes shrank. Success came from pointing out what worked and ignoring what didn’t.

Sutherland did, by the way, confess her techniques to her husband. He was not only amused; he learned how they worked and tried them out on her, as well.

Another place I’ve seen the rewards-only technique is online with “TAGteach,” where clickers (yes, the same clickers used by dolphin and dog trainers) are used for training people to learn new skills. In the following video, kids learn basic high jump techniques:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WH63lywm_Sc]

The TAGteach blog explains a few key points:

Note the self assessment and absence of frustration when they miss the tag point. This video shows rapid learning of a complex skill without ever pointing out mistakes. It also provides a good example of backchaining… starting with the last part of the skill and gradually adding pieces to move toward the completed skill.

The positive is reinforced with a reward—a “Click”—while the undesirable is ignored. Here’s another example in which a young boy learns to tie shoes from a teacher who uses only positive reinforcement (and a clicker…and apparently a few beans).

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlA8lK1_lII]

What do you think?

Could this work with writers, focusing on one skill at a time and rewarding them with the equivalent of a “click” when I spot it effectively woven into their assignment? Perhaps writing a simple “Yes!” next to the skill performed well (attempting simile or alliteration, for example), while ignoring all other problems?

It must require tremendous restraint. But what a great atmosphere the positive approach could create. As people discover what works, they can duplicate results, perfect that skill and move to the next level.

It builds confidence that’s based on substance. Positive reinforcement recently worked with me. I wish I could say it was in the area of professional development, but the reality is that it’s a bit more vain. This week I wore a new (well, new-to-me) striped blouse with a vest and nice-fitting jeans. I’m never confident putting together outfits, and my friends were seeing this combination on me for the first time. I worried a little. Did it work? Or did I look like a Goodwill goofball? Two people went out of their way to tell me, “You look cute!”

“Click.”

“Click.”

Guess what I’m wearing today?

Please leave a comment if you’ve applied an all-positive technique to a unique area (such as writing or skill-building with humans), rewarding the good behavior and ignoring the bad—I’m curious to hear real-life stories and results.

Flickr photo “Writing” by Jonathan Kim. Available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license.

Flickr photo “little boy thumbs up” by Michele Truex. Available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license.

The post Reward the Good and Ignore the Bad: Does It Work? appeared first on Ann Kroeker, Writing Coach.

I’ve discovered a website called Shmoop.com, a place every lifelong learner, autodidact and home educator should explore. I’m particularly grateful for the literature guides they’ve created for lots of famous novels.

• chapter summaries
• themes
• quotes from the book
• character descriptions
• analysis (which includes setting, genre, point of view, tone and plot analysis)
• study questions
• a round-up of the “best of the web” when it comes to additional The Red Badge of Courage or Stephen Crane resources.

Sparknotes and Cliff’s Notes are also valuable teaching resources that I’ve used while preparing to discuss The Red Badge of Courage and other novels with the class. But Shmoop’s fun and lively personality makes me feel like I’m talking with a friend from a book club—a really smart friend who has done great research.If you are looking for a study guide to use with students—something they can fill out as they read—Glencoe published a helpful The Red Badge of Courage study guide. Also, Hewitt Homeschooling has a literature series called Lightning Lit. One of the samples they provide to give you a taste of their study guide format happens to be a section on The Red Badge of Courage. Click here to view. I liked that they used Crane’s writing to introduce a lesson on the power of descriptive writing.If you don’t have a copy of The Red Badge of Courage, you can read it online several places:

• About.com
• The Literature Page
• Page by Page Books
• The Literature Network
• Carnegie Mellon University
• University of Virginia

Finally, John Huston made a film of the book in 1951, starring Audie Murphy as Henry Fleming.This following trailer gives you a taste of the movie in a vintage style (though the clips include battle scenes).[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNLOXYY17PQ]As you continue exploring classics, consider swinging by Shmoop for a quick overview. With their input, I enjoyed and appreciated The Red Badge of Courage on a deeper level than I would have on my own.Visit my other Explore the Classics post: The Scarlet Letter (a pre-Shmoop overview)

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Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome—it doesn’t have to be a recipe. If you just want to post photos of your food processor blades, that’ll do just fine.When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post and join us through Mr. Linky.Here’s a Mr. Linky tutorial:

Write up a post, publish, then return here and click on Mr. Linky below. A screen will pop up where you can type in your blog name and paste in the url to your own Food on Fridays post (give us the exact link to your Food on Fridays page, not just the link to your blog).You can also visit other people’s posts by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking participants’ names–you should be taken straight to their posts.Please note: I return when possible during the day and update this post by hand to include a list of the links provided via Mr. Linky. If I can’t get to the computer to do so, you may access them all by clicking on the Mister Linky logo.

Food on Fridays Participants

Food on Fridays with AnnFor years I’ve made macaroni and cheese from scratch by whipping up a white sauce (flour-based roux & milk), adding cheese, and mixing it into the cooked macaroni. Now that I’ve made it four hundred twenty-seven times, it’s easy to throw together. But it dirties a lot of pans.So when I read through Leila’s fast, easy, creamy, cheesy macaroni and cheese instructions, I couldn’t wait to try it.People, I will never go back.I’ve been transformed; or, my macaroni and cheese has been transformed, and that’s almost the same thing.So get out your cornstarch, pick up a bag of sharp cheddar cheese next time you’re at the store, and have fun with Leila’s charming, freeing, beautifully documented step-by-step tutorial.I’m here to tell you…Dinner will never be the same.

Photo of Leila’s Fast, Easy, Creamy, Cheesy Macaroni and Cheese from “Our Mothers, Our Daughters.”

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Sam Van Eman is another of the HighCallingBlogs.com people I’m getting to know.Culture Editor at HCB, Sam also blogs at New Breed of Advertisers: Becoming Good Neighbors to the Consumer Next Door, inviting marketers to become good neighbors to the consumer next door.He wrote On Earth as It is in Advertising? Moving from Commercial Hope to Gospel Hype (Brazos Press), about which he humbly advised, “Folks either love this book or doze off by the middle of Chapter 2, so go into it with mediocre expectations and you’ll be alright.”Sam is also a staff specialist for the CCO, an organization that partners with colleges, churches and other organizations to develop men and women who live out their Christian faith in every area of life.Ann: HighCallingBlogs explores the intersection of work and faith. Please explain your work for my readers.Sam: Thanks, Ann. For years I’ve cared about something we call double-study. For college students that means putting as much time into knowing the Bible as they do their Biology textbooks. C.S. Lewis said, “The job is really on us, on the laymen” to inform Christians how to go about their work faithfully. It’s silly, he notes, that people believe, “The Church ought to give us a lead.”The exploration of work and faith depends upon engaged workers – informed and doubly-educated laypeople – to take the lead. HCB promotes this kind of engagement.What do I do? I’m the Culture Content Editor so I try to help the community engage with cultural observations. I’m not cutting edge (Where do you even get a Twitter account?), but I enjoy facilitating a faithful response to the world around us.

Click HERE to read the interview in its entirety….

(Sam, with the cap, rides the Cool Bus)

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Writers write to be heard, which means writers must brace themselves for input, whether it ends up being destructive criticism or health critique. J.C. Schaap describes this kind of input among students in his blog post “Witless Fear and Hug Lines.”

In it, he tells how scary it is for a student to lay out something he or she has written in front of her peers and “let them go at it.” I remember classes like that. They were painful.

We turned in a poem or story to the teacher, who made copies to pass out in class. He would hand us a packet with a submission from every student. One by one we critiqued each piece, pointing out what worked (and what didn’t), trying to explain why it worked (or didn’t). For the young and/or insecure writer, this process can be discouraging and at worst, destructive, demeaning the person for taking creative risks and trying something new. If handled well by the instructor, however, the input can be invaluable, making us (and our work) stronger, pointing out weak spots that need editing.

Some of Schaap’s students sent e-mails telling him that they were scared, witless. So he gave them a trial run with an anonymous piece he found in his files. At first, they were reluctant to say anything negative. But someone spotted a scene in the story that seemed unrealistic and hesitantly pointed it out. That first comment opened up the rest of the class, and Schaap reported that “condemnation starting rolling down like justice is supposed to. Right before my eyes, a bandwagon appeared.” He continued:

There was a hangin’ coming, I knew, so I told the madding crowd that next week—when their own workshopping begins—the same darn thing is likely to happen, only they’ll be looking at the actual writer, not thinking of her in the abstract, because next week the writers R US or whatever.

That quieted the mob into stony silence.

Teaching can be fun. If it wasn’t, I’d quit in a minute.

“So,” one of them says, meekly, “when we’re done, can we have a hug line?”

If we know we’re helping people become stronger writers, our critique can be constructive; especially when followed up by specific encouragement … and a hug.

This weekend I received a comment at an abandoned blog associated with a long-ignored website I created in 2001. On that website, I published some poetry. Someone apparently visited the poetry page.

This person saw that there was no convenient way to leave a comment (that website is static, without a familiar blog-platform), yet he or she was motivated enough to find the old blog (which would have required a click or two) and leave an anonymous comment. Anonymous went to all that trouble to tell me this:

“Your poetry—it sucks. I mean, it really sucks. Really.”

Everyone is entitled to his or her opinion.

But if someone studied my poetry closely enough to form that strong opinion, I wouldn’t mind finding out what he or she thought made the poems “suck” so badly.

In her opinion, how could I improve these poems? What should I practice? Is there something this person would recommend that I could try in the future? This one comment has reminded me that when I review and critique someone’s work—especially something as personal as poetry—I need to be constructive.

For those who may be involved in a writing group or workshop, check out “The Difference between Critique and Criticism,” from Scribe’s Alley:

• Criticism finds fault/Critique looks at structure
• Criticism looks for what’s lacking/Critique finds what’s working
• Criticism condemns what it doesn’t understand/Critique asks for clarification
• Criticism is spoken with a cruel wit and sarcastic tongue/Critique’s voice is kind, honest, and objective
• Criticism is negative/Critique is positive (even about what isn’t working)
• Criticism is vague and general/Critique is concrete and specific
• Criticism has no sense of humor/Critique insists on laughter, too
• Criticism looks for flaws in the writer as well as the writing/Critique addresses only what is on the page

Taken from Writing Alone, Writing Together; A Guide for Writers and Writing Groups by Judy Reeves

Specific, insightful, kind critique is welcomed. This can be gleaned from a healthy writing group (learn more about forming writing groups in Charity Singleton Craig’s article at Tweetspeak), a trusted writing partner or colleague, a writing coach (as a coach, I offer clients ongoing constructive, encouraging input), or a gentle editor.

The cry for gentle, kind, constructive input comes from so many of us. Even Emily Dickinson:

This is my letter to the world,
That never wrote to me,
—The simple news that Nature told,
With tender majesty.
Her message is committed
To hands I cannot see;
For love of her, sweet countrymen,
Judge tenderly of me!

Writers have to develop a thick skin and deal with criticism, even that which is destructive. But when we are dealing with someone else’s words, whether in the form of a poem, post or story, we would do well to assume that they would like our input followed up by a “hug line” and that their heart’s cry is: “Judge tenderly of me!”

* * *

Flickr photo “Making Poetry” by Aurelio Asiain available under a Creative Commons license for noncommercial use, requiring attribution and no derivative work. Post originally published in 2010; updated with minor edits and updated links August 2015.

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Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome—your link could be a recipe like your favorite Colts blue Superbowl party dip, but it does not have to be a recipe. If it’s about shopping at Trader Joe’s or your review of “Julie & Julia,” go ahead and link up! Think of it as a virtual pitch-in where you can sample what everyone brings and have a great time.When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post and join us through Mr. Linky.Here’s a Mr. Linky tutorial:

Write up a post, publish, then return here and click on Mr. Linky below. A screen will pop up where you can type in your blog name and paste in the url to your own Food on Fridays post (give us the exact link to your Food on Fridays page, not just the link to your blog).You can also visit other people’s posts by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking participants’ names–you should be taken straight to their posts.Please note: I return when possible during the day and update this post by hand to include a list of the links provided via Mr. Linky. If I can’t get to the computer to do so, you may access them all by clicking on the Mister Linky logo.

Food on Fridays Participants

Food on Fridays with Ann

Today I want to introduce you to my friend L.L. Barkat. We met at the 2008 Festival of Faith & Writing, where we sat in the spring sunshine munching our pre-ordered box lunches and talked about writing, publishing, editors and agents. Little did I know that a year or so later, she would contact me in her role as Managing Editor at HighCallingBlogs (HCB) to ask me to serve as a volunteer contributor and later as a Content Editor. It’s been a privilege and pleasure following her work online, reading her published works, and now working with her through HCB.Ann: L.L., first off, what’s your all-time favorite recipe? Will you share it with Food on Fridays readers?LL Barkat: I have so many favorites! Here’s a Greek recipe I love. If you prefer to make it with beef, that can work too. But I’m a veggie girl, so…Greek Roasted Vegetables and ChickpeasAdd all to a large rectangular casserole dish and cover with aluminum foil. Roast at 400 degrees for about 2 hours or until very tender. Remove foil, lower heat to 350 and roast for another 15 minutes or until nicely browned…• assorted vegetables chopped chunky, such as turnip, carrot, potato, celery, red onion• 1 can or 1 1/2 cups dry and pre-cooked chickpeas (or 1 lb. beef if you prefer, sautéed first until brown)• 1 TB balsamic vinegar• 1 TB worcestershire sauce• 4 large garlic, minced• 1/2 jar Muir Glen Sauce• 1 TB Muir Glen tomato paste• 1 tsp. cinnamon• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg• 1/2 tsp. allspice• 1/2 tsp. ground clove• 1/4 cup red wine• a few pours olive oil• 2 cups water (add more as needed throughout, for desired sauce consistency)Finish…Add salt and pepper to taste and a few pours of olive oil. Mix in a handful or two of raisins.Serve over any kind of flat noodle, with salad or other green vegetable. The rich spices are an excellent complement to the mild flavor of chickpeas.Ann: Mmmm….I’ll bet the kitchen smells great while it’s roasting. Well, now that we’re off to a delicious start, let’s talk a little about HCB and your role as Managing Editor. Your Post “5 Things a Blog Network Can Do for You”  is a great overview of HCB. How would you describe your Managing Editor role?LL Barkat: It is my absolute dream job. I get to be social, strategize, write, host Twitter parties, go to conferences, work with Editors. Wow! I love it.The cool thing is that it happened because I started by volunteering, and then HCB entered a time of expansion and new funding (which, btw, should still be a trend going into next year, so HCB is a good place to watch for opportunities).Ann: How you do all that you do is beyond me—Managing Editor at HCB, keeping up three blogs, raising and educating two beautiful daughters, learning all about social networking trends, writing books and generating poetry—even hosting poetry parties! You lead Random Acts of Poetry at HCB and host poetry jam sessions through @tspoetry. How do you do it all?LL Barkat: Synergy. Everything I do works together. The Twitter parties, for instance, are also something I use to feed Random Acts of Poetry at HCB. And some of my best poems in InsideOut came from material I wrote during the parties. At my Green Inventions blog I process thoughts about education and technology. At Love Notes to Yahweh I think out loud about chapters I’m writing or material that I need to reflect on for talks.After blogging for more than 3 years, I found I had to approach on-line life this way or I’d burn out.Ann: Synergy. I like that. Now, I have to be honest with you, L.L. @tspoetry still  intimidates me a little. I don’t completely understand how it works. Can you explain it to us? And did your Lazy Blogger’s Tuna Casserole post flow from a @tspoetry party?LL Barkat: Oh, the Twitter parties are so much fun. @tspoetry announces the time (which is usually 9:30-10:30 pm EST every other Tuesday night), then we all get on Twitter and write poetry together. @tspoetry gives prompts, which we respond to. But we also lift and turn each other’s words. It’s challenging, hilarious, sometimes poignant. Check out http://tweetspeakpoetry.com/blog for more info on how to come to a party.Casseroles on Twitter! That post you’re referring to was just me keeping myself company on New Year’s Eve. I was cooking and tweeting and suddenly… The Lazy Blogger’s Tuna Casserole.Ann: I think the foodies here at Food on Fridays might be particularly interested in the food posts at Green Inventions, like your vegetarian dishes and The 30-Day Recipes. Any advice on what they should explore?LL Barkat: I’d probably start in the sidebar, at the recipe list. Or… I don’t know. Maybe begin with your favorite bean? Ann: You’re a woman of great spiritual depth and intellectual curiosity. You explore and express ideas, prayer, creativity and faith through words and art (and food!). One avenue is through blogging at Seedlings in Stone and, as you already mentioned, Love Notes to Yahweh and Green Inventions Central. How do each of these blogs capture/reflect some aspect of who you are?LL Barkat: Sometimes people ask me why I have three separate blogs (it’s not very effective for getting the most Google juice ). But the fun is I can be different things to different audiences; yet it’s the same old me. Writing about all the stuff I love: art, food, spiritual practice, writing, technology, education.Ann: Your book Stone Crossings was recently released when we met at that Festival. You’ve also recently released a book of poetry with International Arts Movement, Inside Out. In keeping with the food theme, would you share “Page 5,” the poem on p. 100-101? I’ll leave my readers with your words.LL Barkat: How delightful. Sure, here it is…Page 5The menusays strawberryshortcakewith whipped creambut here’s the deal:I remember what’s real,my mother’s child-smallhands turning floursugar, shorteningthe “size of a big egg”so the old recipeinstructed. I remembersun-kissed fields offurrows, hills mygrandmother’s roughpatched yet paintedhands turned and raisedto grow strawberries blushedand bleeding real juice,not perfumed waterthat pretends ripenesscut and strewn over too-sweet cake. I remembercream, real, whipped.

“Greek Roasted Vegetables” photo © 2007 by LL Barkat. Used with permission.

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Mega Memory Month January 2010

Final Celebration

Mega Memory Month comes to a close.

The last day of the month, January 31st, falls on a Sunday. I love that. Those of us who have memorized Scripture can post our passages and share them on a day of rest and worship.

Let’s share our projects, our progress, our successes!

Link up your posts via Mr. Linky or create something to publish on the Facebook Event page for Mega Memory Month, which you can access (write your comments on the wall!) HERE.

Mega Memory Month Participants(visit! encourage! be inspired!)

Ann’s Mega Memory Month Project:Colossians 1My original goal was to memorize all of Colossians 1, but I couldn’t finish. So I focused on what I could manage—verses 1-18.My final celebration isn’t fancy. I’m simply going to type it out from memory. I wish it were error-free, but I’m not quite there (I proofed my from-memory version against the original NIV text, adding missing words in red and crossing out words that shouldn’t be there):

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,To the holy and faithful brothers in Christ at Colosse:Grace and peace to you from God our Father.We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints–the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel that has come to you. All over the world this gospel has been is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has already been doing among you since the day you first heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth. You heard it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a fellow ministry of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit.For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking the Lord God to fill you with the knowledge of his will with through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you might may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. In For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. And He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.

Part of me wonders, Is this worth celebrating? Look, it’s only a little over half what I said I’d tackle, and it’s full of errors!Yet, if it weren’t for Mega Memory Month, I might not have bothered with it at all. So I think it is worth it, and I hope you think so, too.Thank you for joining me in the challenge. Thank you for holding me accountable. Thank you for committing to something mega.In the paraphrased words of Paul from his letter to the Colossians, I hope that this project helped you grow in the knowledge of God; that He strengthened you with all power according to His glorious might. I hope you developed great endurance and patience through it.May we now, at the conclusion of this month, joyfully give thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.In everything, Jesus Christ has the supremacy. Amen.

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Photo by HCB-network member nAncY of Just Say the Word.

“Hammers on Black.” Just Say the Word. 7 January 2010. Web. 27 Jan. 2010. <http://justsaytheword.wordpress.com/2010/01/07/1929/>.

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Final Progress Report (#4)This coming Sunday marks the end of Mega Memory Month January 2010.Now don’t panic. Don’t scramble to cram in whatever is left.This week, I urge you to simply stay focused and work steadily each day to add what you can and review what you’ve already managed to memorize. Take some time to relax and plan out your Final Celebration. Remember that? I encourage participants to come up with a final project to commemorate and celebrate this month-long memorization journey. You can recite your passage or project and upload the audio file, create a YouTube video of your recitation, type it up, write it out in calligraphy, or create artwork to accompany the words. It’s up to you.We’ll celebrate with you, no matter how close or far you came to achieving your MMM goal!For this week’s Progress Report, leave a note on your progress at the Facebook Event page I set up for Mega Memory Month (write your comments on the wall!) HERE. You can also summarize your progress in the comments of this post and/or link your own Progress Report post here via Mr. Linky.

Mr. Linky instructions:Click on the icon and a separate screen pops up. In one box, you type in your name and/or website; in the other box, paste in the url to your post. It’ll be saved and accessible by returning to this page and clicking on the icon again.I’ll return later in the day and embed the pop-up links into the text itself here for easy access.

Ann’s ProgressI’m getting to know Max McLean’s voice pretty well these days. I could hear his voice in my head when I was mentally reviewing Colossians 1: 1-23 on Sunday afternoon.I don’t even have verses 1 to 21 solid, however, let alone the entire chapter (which goes to verse 29). So this week, I intend to focus in on Colossians 1:17-23 in particular while reviewing the preceding verses, and that may be where I have to stop. I don’t think I can get the rest in a week.And I’m okay with that.Because I can get the rest eventually—verse by verse, week after week—even after MMM Jan 2010 comes to a close.This passage from Colossians 1 is what I’d like to leave you with today, not so much as practice or to report on my progress, but to encourage everyone involved…know that I’m:

asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience…

May the Lord strengthen you during this final week with all power according to his glorious might…that you may have great endurance and patience. Amen.For your convenience, I decided to keep these memorization resources right at your fingertips each week:• Click HERE to read “An Approach to Extended Memorization” by Dr. Andrew Davis, an article highly recommended by Amy at Lavender Sparkles.• Click HERE for my mega collection of memorization tips and techniques.• Click HERE for more inspiration and practical suggestions for memorizing Scripture from Ann Voskamp of Holy Experience.

It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email RSS feed.Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s book.

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Progress Report #3Mega Memory Month January 2010 is over halfway through. Are you halfway through your project?Leave a note on your progress at the Facebook Event page I set up for Mega Memory Month (write your comments on the wall!) HERE. You can also summarize your progress in the comments of this post and/or link your own Progress Report post here via Mr. Linky.

Mr. Linky instructions:Click on the icon and a separate screen pops up. In one box, you type in your name and/or website; in the other box, paste in the url to your post. It’ll be saved and accessible by returning to this page and clicking on the icon again.I’ll return later in the day and embed the pop-up links into the text itself here for easy access.

Ann’s ProgressI’m behind. Dreadfully behind.The idea was to work on one verse per day. This would work if I’d keep up. But I haven’t.What’s motivating, though, is that as I catch up, I’ll be working on a powerful section that describes Jesus as “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” I especially want to know this part by heart.This section reminds me that “by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (verses 16-17).All things were created by Him and for Him.He is before all things.In Him, all things hold together.That’s big.I want to have those words inside of my head, inside my heart…So, to try to catch up, I decided to pull out every memorization tip and technique. For example, I realized I pick up things well through listening, so I decided to hunt down an audio recording of Colossians 1 (NIV). I found it. Who wouldn’t want to hear Colossians 1 read to them by Max McLean (complete with a smooth British accent)? To listen, click HERE. And thanks, Bible Gateway.Search for an audio recording of your own passage and translation at Bible Gateway HERE. (They offer Contemporary English Version, ESV, NIV, Today’s NIV, NASB and KJV).

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together (Colossians 1:17)

Lord, hold these words together in my head.

For your convenience, I decided to keep these memorization resources right at your fingertips each week:• Click HERE to read “An Approach to Extended Memorization” by Dr. Andrew Davis, an article highly recommended by Amy at Lavender Sparkles.• Click HERE for my mega collection of memorization tips and techniques.• Click HERE for more inspiration and practical suggestions for memorizing Scripture from Ann Voskamp of Holy Experience.

It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email RSS feed.Visit NotSoFastBook.comto learn more about Ann’s new book

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Progress Report #2Mega Memory Month January 2010 is in full swing.How are you doing?Care to share your memorization methods or unload your ups and downs with those of us who are sharing the struggle?We’re in this together, so please let us know!Leave a note in the comments and/or link your own Progress Report post here via Mr. Linky.Click on the icon and a separate screen pops up. In one box, you type in your name and/or website; in the other box, paste in the url to your post. It’ll be saved and accessible by returning to this page and clicking on the icon again.I’ll return later in the day and embed the pop-up links into the text itself here for easy access.

MMM Participant Reports:

In addition, you can post on the wall of the Mega Memory Month Facebook event page.If you’re just finding out about Mega Memory Month, jump in—there’s still time to dig in to something big!Click HERE for the MMM Headquarters.Ann’s ProgressI owe my progress in Colossians this week in part to technology.My plan has been to add a verse each day. One night when I was nestled in my bed, warm and cozy, I was ready to learn the new verse but didn’t have my Bible on hand.I did, however, have my laptop nearby. So I logged onto Bible Gateway. After all, the words are exactly the same whether they’re printed on the physical page of my NIV study Bible or on the virtual page of Bible Gateway (many more translations are available at the site).All this week, I’ve been repeating the verses, adding a few hand motions to emphasize key words. And just two days ago, to reinforce what I’ve been working on, I added the first-letter prompt method explained in THIS website article.After pasting my text into the converter, I printed out the automatically generated prompts:As you can see, I fold this paper up and carry it with me. When I need to review, these letters prompt me when I’m stuck and nobody’s around to help.One time I was at a coffee shop. I remembered to stick my prompt sheet in my bag, but I didn’t have my Bible with me to remind me of the actual words.So I used my new phone—we added the data plan for one month as an experiment, so my new free phone is, at least temporarily, more than a phone! What do you think of that, Lisa? Yes, thanks to mobile Internet access, I logged onto Bible Gateway again and brought up my passage, which showed up in teeny-tiny font and presented as a long, slender column.It worked just fine, clarifying a section I couldn’t recall.I’m still a little shaky on the most recent two verses, but I’m making progress. I don’t know if I’ll make it all the way through the chapter, but I’m not worrying about that right now. For now, it’s just verse by verse.And I don’t suppose it matters too much whether we review our verses/poems/speeches as handwritten words on card stock taped to our car dashboards, or as pages on a website.Either way, they’re going into our minds.And, hopefully, our hearts.Also, if you need ideas or inspiration, here are some resources right at your fingertips—you, too, can use technology to aid your memorization efforts! • Click HERE to read “An Approach to Extended Memorization” by Dr. Andrew Davis, an article highly recommended by Amy at Lavender Sparkles.• Click HERE for my mega collection of memorization tips and techniques.• Click HERE for more inspiration and practical suggestions for memorizing Scripture from Ann Voskamp of Holy Experience.

It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email RSS feed.Visit NotSoFastBook.comto learn more about Ann’s new book.

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LL: I remember meeting you at the Calvin festival. I was walking through the breezeway, and from a distance, I saw this cool looking person peering at me inquisitively. It was you! We officially met moments later, then spent a lunchtime together chatting forever. Remember?Ann: How could I forget how gracious you were after I practically stalked you! I knew you through blogging communities and writing networks online, but we’d never officially interacted. So when I saw your book, Stone Crossings, for sale at the InterVarsity Press table at the Calvin festival, I asked the staff if you were attending. They said you were, and I thought, “Hey, here’s a chance to meet that smart LL Barkat.” Yes, I really thought that, because I admired your clever, intelligent comments and your beautiful yet accessible poetry.I asked what you looked like, since I’d never seen a photo of you. They described you, so I spent the rest of the day looking for someone who fit that description. When I spotted you down that breezeway, you looked like a promising candidate. I was staring at you, waiting until you got close enough so that I could read your name tag. You must have been thinking, “Am I about to be accosted?”Instead of running or calling security, you were poised and gracious; and when I explained myself, you invited me to join you for lunch! We packed a lot into that lunch break. I think we talked about books we were reading, books we were writing, publishing, agents, bloggers and blogging. And shoes. We discussed our shoes…

Speaking of shoes, here they are:

I’d love to share this interview with you in its entirety. Would you mind popping over to L.L.’s Green Inventions blog to read it?

Click HERE.

Photo of L.L. Barkat’s and my shoes by L.L. Barkat. Used with permission.

Mega Memory Month January 2010 has returned!

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Progress Report #1We’re only four days into Mega Memory Month January 2010, so progress will be minimal. Still, you may have something to say about it.If so, leave a note in the comments and/or link your own Progress Report post here via MckLinky. I’ll come back later in the day and embed the pop-up links into the text itself for easy access.

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Click here to enter your link and view the entire list of entered links…

1. Erin at filling my patch of sky
2. Amy @ Lavender *Sparkles*
3. Stand and Consider

Ann’s Progress Report:Colossians 1 has 29 verses.January has 31 days.That equates to about one verse per day. If I stay on track, I’ll get two extra days to review the whole thing at the end of the month; if I get behind, I have a couple of make-up days for the verses I’m lacking.Perfect.I’m starting out with Dr. Andrew Davis’s method as recommended by Amy at Lavender *Sparkles* (Amy summarizes the method in this post.)• Click HERE to read “An Approach to Extended Memorization” by Dr. Andrew Davis, an article highly recommended by Amy at Lavender Sparkles.• Click HERE for my mega collection of memorization tips and techniques.• Click HERE for more inspiration and practical suggestions for memorizing Scripture from Ann Voskamp of Holy Experience.

It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email RSS feed.Visit NotSoFastBook.comto learn more about Ann’s new book.

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For Mega Memory Month January 2010, I’ll be working on Colossians 1.The thought is (I admit this may be a bit idealistic—even unrealistic—nevertheless…) that I might add on to this chapter over time; that is, for future Mega Memory Months I could continue with Colossians 2, 3 and 4.For now, I’m going to focus on Colossians 1 without fretting about the rest. Colossians 1 has 29 verses, so that’s approximately one verse per day. Now, I know that’s a lot for my feeble mind to tackle, but surely it can be done.After all, “all things were created by him and for him” (Colossians 1:16). My mind, including its aging synapses, was created by Him and for Him. To use it for this purpose—to concentrate on memorizing a chunk of God’s written Word—seems right and good. There will be much to ponder and celebrate along the way. For example, this passage includes a long prayer, so that my memory work can take on dual purpose and meaning, breathing life into my own prayers:

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:9-14)

Toward the end of the month, if I make it through the entire chapter, I’ll arrive at this verse:To [the saints] God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).

Christ in you.

I’ll cling to that this month, as I struggle through the paragraphs and stumble over phrases. It’s not just about the words in me … it’s about The Word in me.Christ in me.Now that right there puts the “mega” in this month.

Dove ornament photo © 2009 by Ann Kroeker.

To participate in Mega Memory Month, visit its Headquarters post HERE.

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It’s back!  Just in time to support your New Year’s Resolutions!

Mega Memory Month (MMM): January 2010 Headquarters

It’s day one of Mega Memory Month! Those of us participating now have 31 days to pack into our minds whatever it is we’ve selected to memorize: a poem, speech, passage of Scripture, or song lyrics.Here’s how to participate:

• Pick something to memorize. Challenge yourself with poetry, a famous speech, or a passage of Scripture. This month my focus will be on portions of the Bible.
• Announce it on your blog or in the comments of this post when you’re ready. (Note: If you find out about MMM late or forget about it until halfway through the month, no problem. Jump in and do what you can in the time that remains.)
• Leave a link (in MckLinky below or in the comments) that will take readers to your own blog’s MMM post. Help spread the word about Mega Memory Month (and share your progress) via Facebook, Twitter, etc.
• Include the MMM button to tie us together visually. It helps interested readers find and join the challenge!
• Start memorizing!

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Click HERE to enter your link and view the entire list of entered links…

1. Begin With Bread
2. Erin at filling my patch of sky
3. Amy @ Lavender *Sparkles*
4. Pursing the Kingdom
5. Lindas Patchwork Quilt
6. A New Year…A New Decade…New Beginnings
7. Ann Kroeker (Christ in you)
8. Zoanna @ A Penchant for Pens
9. Hiding Gods Word in My Heart
10. Leann at Good Neighbors
11. Power @ A Lettered Legacy
12. Amyazed by Him
13. Soli Deo Gloria
14. Adventures in Unsell Land

Monday Progress Reports (Jan. 4, 11, 18 and 25) will include an additional MckLinky for those who want to chronicle their progress. Feel free to include struggles, disappointments, surprises, memory tips, breakthroughs and victories.

• Progress Report #1
• Progress Report #2

Final Celebration scheduled for Sunday, January 31. For the Final Celebration, I encourage participants to plan some way to wrap up the month’s challenge. You can create a presentation as simple as writing or typing out from memory your passage. Or you could get more involved, creating artwork or a video or audio file to preserve and share your recitation with us.I’ll be right here with you all month.• Click HERE for suggestions on how to select a passage to memorize (courtesy of Helen at A Work of Heart).• Click HERE to read “An Approach to Extended Memorization” by Dr. Andrew Davis, an article highly recommended by Amy at Lavender Sparkles. • Click HERE for my mega collection of memorization tips and techniques.• Click HERE for more inspiration and practical suggestions for memorizing Scripture from Ann Voskamp of Holy Experience.Our minds (and hearts!) can hold more than we think they can.

Improving Your Memory for Dummies minibook photo © 2009 by Ann Kroeker.

It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email or RSS feed.Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

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Mega Memory Month Returns January 2010!

Our extended family’s white elephant exchange included some bags stuffed full of odd items picked up at a dollar store, included this minibook:Can you believe it?Just in time for Mega Memory Month January 2010 I secured a copy of Improving Your Memory for Dummies, by John B. Arden, PhD, Director of Training for Psychology, Kaiser Permanente Medical Centers.Here’s an excerpt to get us thinking about memory work from the heading:

Feeding your brain properlyYour ability to remember depends on a number of factors, first of which is maintaining a healthy brain through adequate nourishment. To ensure that your brain works at an optimum level, follow these guidelines:

• Maintain a balanced diet. What you eat affects your brain’s chemistry. Eating the right foods at the right time gives your body the building blocks to manufacture brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters not only affect your mood and ability to think clearly, but also your ability to remember. A simple, balanced meal consists of a carbohydrate, a protein, and a fruit or vegetable. Eating a balanced meal three times a day can provide you with a sound foundation for your brain and its memory.
• Take the right supplements. Vitamins and herbs can support your brain’s ability to produce good memory skills. Specific vitamins, such as some of the B vitamins, help form the building blocks for healthy brain chemistry. Other vitamins, such as vitamin E, help your brain cleanse itself of bad chemicals. Herbs such as ginkgo, have been used to enhance the circulation of blood in the brain.
• Get regular exercise. Exercise enhances your memory because it helps your brain get the nutrients that it needs. Every time you exercise, you increase your respiratory rate, your metabolism, and your energy level.

Avoiding foods, drinks, and drugs that depress memoryFoods, drinks, and chemicals that your brain is exposed to have major effects on your memory.Warning: If you eat junk food loaded with sugar, you set yourself up to crash, finding yourself full of anxiety and short of short-term memory. Similarly, if you drink too much caffeine, the liquid anxiety scatters your thoughts and shatters your memory ability. If you consume caffeine and sugar on an empty stomach, your mood and memory skills will plummet quickly. (Arden 13-14)

In summary, it appears that as we work toward memorizing something meaningful … something mega, we can support (or avoid impeding) our efforts by eating a balanced diet, taking the right supplements (he didn’t provide much guidance on that topic), and exercising.Will you join me in January?Memorizing something is a mega-powerful way to start out the new year. You can work on almost anything and reap benefits—I’ve enjoyed including poetry in my Mega Memory Month selections during previous MMM challenges, for example—but this time my focus is exclusively Scripture. I want to exercise my mind and feed my soul; for me, memorizing a passage from the Bible is an important thing I can do to make truth readily accessible to ponder and pray.Here’s what I recommend as you prepare:

1. Pray about your selection.
2. Type up and print out the passage you plan to memorize (consider using card stock for durability as you tote it around with you for a month).
3. Devise a plan. Try to come up with an approach to memorizing that you can try out from the start. See the two links below for suggestions. (And according to Dr. Arden’s Dummies advice, be sure to eat right, take supplements and exercise your body!)
4. Join the challenge!

On January 1st, I’ll create a January 2010 Mega Memory Month carnival headquarters.For an entire month, we’ll all work on our passages together and report back each week on our progress (Mondays).At the end of the month, we’ll celebrate together whatever we managed to take in.You won’t be alone.I hope many will join the Mega Memory Month challenge in January, but you will have me along for the ride, at the very least.I’m not an expert at memorizing, but I’ll be working hard.And I’ll do my best to encourage you along the way.• Click HERE for my mega collection of memorization tips and techniques.• Visit Holy Experience for more inspiration and practical suggestions for memorizing Scripture.Our minds (and hearts!) can hold more than we think they can.

Work Cited: Arden, John B.  Improving Your Memory for Dummies. Indianapolis, IN: Wiley Publishing, Inc., 2009. Print.

Get ready … Mega Memory Month returns January 2010!

It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email or RSS feed.Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

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(alternative button below)

Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome. Recipes are enjoyed, but you can describe your Christmas menu. I actually would be interested to know what you have for breakfast and the main meal.Anyway, my point is that the Food on Fridays parameters are not at all narrow. I think of it as a virtual pitch-in where everyone brings something to share; even if the content of one item is unrelated to the rest, we sample it all anyway and have a great time.When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or the new smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post and join us through Mr. Linky.Here’s a Mr. Linky tutorial:

Write up a post, publish, then return here and click on Mr. Linky below. A screen will pop up where you can type in your blog name and paste in the url to your own Food on Fridays post (give us the exact link to your Food on Fridays page, not just the link to your blog).You can also visit other people’s posts by clicking on Mr. Linky and then clicking participants’ names–you should be taken straight to their posts.Please note: I return when possible during the day and update this post by hand to include a list of the links provided via Mr. Linky. If I can’t get to the computer to do so, you may access them all by clicking on the Mister Linky logo.

Food on Fridays with Ann

Next Friday is Christmas Day. If I think of it, I’ll toss up a Christmas greeting with a Mr. Linky for super-motivated foodies, but don’t hold me to it.When I was visiting some of last week’s Food on Fridays participants, I was particularly intrigued by the very first link.Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker linked to a recipe for Gingerbread with Lemon Sauce.I’ve never made gingerbread before. The kids have never tasted it.So I decided to give it a try.Yum!Some of the kids weren’t too keen on the lemon sauce, but they’re picky eaters. So we won’t count their votes.Most of us devoured our first serving and helped ourselves to a second.She described this gingerbread as a cake-y, warm, “Old World” version that she found in a 1936 Pennsylvania Dutch cookbook.  The lemon sauce recipe comes from the 1945 American Woman’s Cook Book.Click on THIS LINK for her recipe.Here is a brief pictorial of my first experience making gingerbread.First I was startled by the amount of molasses required. One whole cup used up half the bottle. It smells a little weird, too, so I was glad none of the kids wandered in at this point.

What is molasses, anyway? I wondered this, and in the spirit of lifelong learning, I looked it up. Unlike my industrious son who heaved open the giant Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, I simply clicked on Merriam-Webster online.

What is molasses? Click HERE for dictionary definition. Click HERE for Wikipedia explanation. Click HERE to read about the Boston Molasses Disaster of 1919.

One of the kids came into the kitchen and asked what I was baking.

“Gingerbread,” I answered.

“Oh! Is it gingerbread cookies?”

“No, it’s gingerbread.”

“Can we make it into a gingerbread house?”

“No, it’s just gingerbread. It will be like cake.”

“Oh.”

I repeated that exchange almost verbatim three times with three different kids.

Never made lemon sauce before. I think it turned out right.

Most of my baking takes place at night when there’s no natural light, so these pictures never turn out all that great.

Nevertheless, here it is. A slice of gingerbread with lemon sauce.

I don’t really have a particular holiday treat that everyone waits all year for me to make. I thought this could be the thing. I loved it and would make it again and again.

I suspect that the kids, however, would prefer that I try making the dough for a gingerbread man, instead.

Anyone have a good gingerbread cookie recipe for me to try?

May you enjoy many delicious Christmas memories!

Get ready … Mega Memory Month returns January 2010!

It’s easy to subscribe to annkroeker.com updates via email or RSS feed.Visit NotSoFastBook.com to learn more about Ann’s new book.

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