"The true art of memory is the art of attention." - Samuel JohnsonEntry #1 (8/30)
This entry is to capture where you are in your life. It might be a good idea to begin with a comment on your general situation as you sense it. Begin with a broad comment; then let your mind sweep through your recent life. Record specifics, bits of dialogue, frustrations, pleasures, questions, dreams - everything that comes to you. Be specific.
Entry #2 (9/9) - Stones in the River
Brace yourselves: this entry involves just a wee bit of drawing. Don't worry, the point isn't how pretty you make it. Begin by drawing two squiggly lines on your paper so that they form the banks of a river - make it large so that you have room in which to write. Now, imagine the river as a stream of time - maybe your timeline flows from left to right, or maybe it flows from right to left (maybe it's a whirlpool?!).
Begin drawing stones in your river. Each stone should represent a specific place that played a role of importance at some point in your life. You might choose to arrange the stones in chronological sequence, and you might not - it's your river. Think of big places and little places as well - for example, my stones include the whole town of Durango, Colorado, but also my grandmother's kitchen (whichever house she resided in at the time), and the top of one specific rock at the very pinnacle of the La Plata Mountains. Be sure to draw the size of the stones in accordance with their importance - a place that is very near and dear to your heart should appear as a larger stone, while a place where something cool once happened ought to be represented as a smaller stone. Be sure to label each stone (e.g. - Grandma's Kitchen in the house on Weber Street).
After you've spent some time drawing and labeling the stones (be sure to use color as appropriate - Durango is a green stone for me), revisit each stone, one at a time, and write little lists of people (maybe pictures/caricatures) and pets that go with each place. For example, the weird neighbors I had in Durango that always left crookneck squash and snap beans on my porch when they harvested their huge gardens, they definitely go on the little list for Durango. After you've spent some time conjuring up people and pets, then revisit each stone and add some sensory detail (this might take the form of little satellite stones that orbit each of the place stones/lists). Include sights, smells, tastes, feelings, and sounds that come to mind when you remember these important places. (It's cliche, I know, but smells and tastes of cookies go with Grandma's kitchen in my river.)
After you've finished, take a couple of minutes to survey what you've written/drawn, and include anything you've forgotten - or anything additional that you think belongs. Finally, it's time to spend a few minutes writing about one of the people/places in your river. Select an image or memory that is meaningful to you and, on an additional sheet of paper, free write for fifteen minutes. Include absolutely everything you can think of in relation to the place you've chosen. Remember that the goal here is to collect writing experiences, so keep that pen/pencil moving, and don't stop to reread, edit, or revise as you're writing - just keep it flowing.
Entry #3 (9/16)
Read and respond to the following quotation: "Try to understand men. If you understand each other you will be kind to each other. Knowing a man well never leads to hate and nearly always leads to love." - John Steinbeck. Respond by explaining what you understand this quotation to mean, then explore the relevance of these words within your personal experience. What experiences have you had with people that either serve to support or disprove Steinbeck's assertions? Finally, consider the global significance of Steinbeck's ideas. How can we learn from each other on a global scale? How is this relevant in the world today?
Entry #4 (9/23)
This writer's notebook entry will consist of the in-class quickwrites we complete during our introduction to the magic camera technique and SNAPSHOT writing. Be sure to refer to your SNAPSHOT handout (distributed in class).
Entry #5 (10/1)
Morality is made up of one's principles concerning the disctinction between right and wrong or good and bad behavior. Characterize your own morality. Do you consider yourself a moral person? What sorts of moral dilemmas and choices have you faced? Where would you place yourself in relation to Kohlberg's theory of the Stages of Moral Development? Be sure to write for at least fifteen minutes and correctly label your entry.
Entry #6 (10/11)
List personal items in your possession. Don't just name individual items - include brief descriptions and associations you have with them. Start by emptying out the contents of your wallet or purse - or better yet, your backpack or locker. Arrange the items in whatever way suits you, then study them. Hold them. Read the writing on the ones that have writing. Smell the ones that have smells. As an alternative, go to the medicine cabinet in your bathroom, cosmetic drawer, or refrigerator. List jars, bottles, cans, and individual items. Explore your association with these items. Be specific and remember to spend at least fifteen minutes in the act of writing.
Entry #7 (10/29) - From Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg
Write about the foods you love most. Be specific. Give me the details. Where did you eat it, who were you with, what season was it in? What was the best meal you had last week? "That banana I ate in the the cold kitchen Tuesday morning stopped the world."
From the table, the cheese, the old blue-eyed friend across from you, from the glasses of water, the striped tablecloth, fork, knife, thick white plate, green salad, butter, and glass of pale pink juice, you can extend yourself out in memory, time, space, thought, to Israel, Russia, to religion, the trees and the sidewalk. And you have a place to begin from, something concrete, palatable, clear, right in front of your face.
Okay, so some of you may not be social. You've never eaten a good meal in your life, you're broke and don't have and friends. Well, simply begin with the last stale cheese sandwich you had in that empty apartment on First Avenue with the cockroaches floating on top of your two-day-old coffee. It's your life, begin from it.
Remember to write furiously for at least fifteen minutes.
Entry #8 (11/1) - The Action of a Sentence (from Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg)
Verbs are very important. They are the action and energy of a sentence. Be aware of how you use them. Try this exercise. Fold a sheet of paper in half the long way. On the left side of the page list ten nouns. Any ten.
lilacs
horse
mustache
cat
fiddle
muscles
dinosaur
seed
plug
video
Now, turn the paper over to the right column. Think of an occupation; for example, a carpenter, doctor, flight attendant. List fifteen verbs on the right half of the page that go with that position.
A Cook:
saute
chop
mince
slice
cut
heat
broil
taste
boil
bake
fry
marinate
whip
stir
scoop
Open the page. You have nouns listed in a row down the left side and verbs listed on the right. Try joining the nouns with the verbs to see what new combinations you can get, and then finish the sentences, casting the verbs in the past tense if you need to.
Dinosaurs marinate in the earth. The fiddles boiled the air with their music. The lilacs sliced the sky into purple.
Here are some other examples of the use of verbs: Her husband's breath sawed her sleep in half. My blood buzzes like a hornet's nest. The sunken light of late day stretches on their propane tank.
At the bottom of the page, provide three excellent sentences in which you pair nouns and verbs in an original way.
Entry #9 (11/4)
Record impressions of where you live. Include as many sensory details and descriptions of your home as you can in fifteen minutes. You may also include descriptions of the people and pets with which you live. Go through your dwelling room by room, hallway by hallway, smell by smell in your entry. Be sure to describe the lighting and sounds in each room. Try to capture the fleeting impressions and details. Record any associations you make - what comes to mind as you write these descriptive details? Perhaps your mind will connect back to other places you've lived; work those details into your entry. Be specific and label your entry.
Entry #10 (11/10)
"The act of putting pen to paper encourages pause for thought, this in turn makes us think more deeply about life, which helps use regain our equilibrium." - Norbet Platt
With the goal of examining your own equilibrium, or state of balance, take a moment to reflect on your daily life in writing. List current activities you do: attend classes, read, write papers, take tests; drive or ride to school; sleep and roll out of bed in the morning; talk with friends, teachers, parents; hold a job or play sports; draw, paint, or play a musical instrument; attend church or participate in community service; etc. Then from the list, select one or two to write about in greater detail. Record everything that comes to you: how it feels to do the activity, why you like doing the activity, how long you've been doing the activity, etc. Explore your relationship to the activity, and close by reflecting on the balance of activities in your life. Be specific and label your entry.
Entry #11 (11/12)
Select a favorite personal photograph that connects with some aspect of your life - past or present. In as much detail as possible, describe the images within the photograph. Discuss how this photograph makes connections or associations with your life and memories. Describe the events, situations, or relationships surrounding the time of the photograph. (If you cannot think of a photograph, you may select a painting or album cover, or some other image that is important in your life.) Be specific and label your entry.
Entry #12 (11/15)
"When it comes to life, the critical things is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude." - G. K. Chesterton
To begin this entry, make a list of twenty things you are thankful for today. Once your list is finished, go back and put a check mark beside those things that you are grateful for that are not monetary or material. Then, reflect on the above quote. Do you think the critical thing in life is the attitude with which you approach it? Reflect on this in writing.
