Chapter Six
The Pathway of Writing
Chapter Inspiration:
“We never know how high we are Till we are asked to rise And then if we are true to plan Our statures touch the skies.” –Emily Dickinson
“Life is too short not to care. Life is too short not to share. Life is too short not to be fair. Just give a little smile. It will enrich you And not hurt you.” –Sri Chinmoy
“Journal writing is a voyage to the interior.” –Christina Baldwin
“Never be entirely idle; but either be reading, or writing, or praying or meditating or endeavoring something for the public good.” —Thomas a Kempis
“Learn as much by writing as by reading.” —Lord Acton
“Real writing takes more than just time; it wants your best moments and the best of you.” —Real Live Preacher
“Without words, without writing and without books there would be no history, there would be no concept of humanity.” –Herman Hesse
“ I have never thought of writing for reputation and honor. What I have in my heart must come out; that is the reason why I compose.” —Ludwig van Beethoven
“Television has raised writing to a new low.” –Samuel Goldwyn
“ If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are rotten, Either write things worth reading or do things worth the writing.” –Benjamin Franklin
Chapter Story:
Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) was born and lived all of her life in Amherst, Massachusetts. She rarely traveled away from home. She spent her time focusing on writing poetry and contemplating the meaning of life. She believed that the important things in life were not fancy clothes or other possessions, but the magical things that happen every day: a hummingbird flying, the wind blow ing, the moon or the stars. Her life was proof that you don’t need outer posses sions to achieve great things.
Because she lived such a simple, quiet life, we don’t know very much about Emily Dickinson. She did not have many friends and she did not go out into her town much. But from her simple life emerged wonderful poetry. Many people consider her one of the greatest American poets. How could she become a great poet without traveling in the world and having many experiences or meeting many people? It is because she was able to see the greatness and beauty of the whole universe in the little things around her. On her walks through the woods and meadows she was able to observe nature as a living miracle. Through poetry she was able to capture that miracle in words.
Emily Dickinson teaches us some important lessons which we can use in our own lives. First is that the simple, natural things in life can make us very happy, if we take the time to pay attention to them, and learn to value them. Second, to be a truly successful person, you don’t need to have a lot of money or to own many things. You just have to work hard and stay focused on your goal. Third, you don’t need to look far in search of a career. Just begin by looking at your own talents and at what you love to do most. In these ways, Emily Dickin son is truly a heroine we can learn from.
Chapter Overview:
Writing or journaling can be a very powerful, positive, safe, and healthy way for us to explore our own ‘inner world.’ Our inner world is our own private world of thoughts, feelings, ideas, dreams, and visions. Our inner world is the place where we are truly ourselves and where we can be alone with ourselves. It is the place from which we grow and learn and change. If we are able to visit our own inner world often, then we can keep our life in balance and our world per spective in harmony. If we have a good connection to our own inner world then it helps us to have positive relationships and friendships with others. Writing or journaling can be extremely effective tools for visiting our inner world and for helping us to discover the lessons and insights that come from visiting that place. Many, many people have found writing to be very useful in their lives.
In addition, modern brain research shows that writing is very good for our brains. When we are writing, our brains get very, very active – in contrast to when we are watching TV, when our brains are not active at all. When our brains are active, this helps us to be more energetic and happier. Not only that, but when our brains are active our brains grow – and we can become smarter and wiser!
Chapter Lessons:
Lesson #1– A mystery story
Write a mystery story about what happened to the smiles in the world. It could be entitled: ‘The Day That Smiles Disappeared.’ Use your imagination to think of and to develop your story. You might want to start by answering a few questions: Where did the smiles go? Did somebody steal the smiles, and if they did, how and when did they steal them? Where are the smiles hidden? How did people look and feel without their smiles? What was the world like without the smiles? How did people get their smiles back? Was there a hero or a group of heroes who helped? If yes, who were they and what were their names? How did the people in the world feel when they got their smiles back? How did the people celebrate? After you write your stories, you can share them with your class and display them on the bulletin board. You may also want to make pictures or illus trations to go with your stories.
Lesson #2 – Your own limerick
Write a limerick that has a positive message about harmony in the world. Alimerick is a five-line poem that has a specific rhythm pattern and a specific rhyme pattern. The rhythm pattern has three beats in lines 1, 2, and 3 and two beats in lines 3 and 4. The rhyme pattern of a limerick is that lines 1, 2 and 5 usually rhyme with each other, and lines 3 and 4 usually rhyme with each other. Sometimes the last line of the limerick is very similar to the first line – just with one or two words switched around. A limerick is usually cute and silly, but we can also use limericks to send a positive message of harmony! Here is a sample limerick:
There once was a boy from O’Hare, Who wanted the whole world to care — Each for the other Like sisters and brothers— Giving, with no love to spare.
Lesson #3 – An essay on an important topic
Write an essay about some issue or challenge in the world that you are concerned about and that you would like to change. When we write an essay we are trying to: a) make a convincing argument for a point of view; b) explain an issue in depth with an aim toward greater understanding; or c) inspire others to feel something or to take some action. After you decide what issue or concern you want to write about, think about which one of these types of essay you want to focus on. Your teacher will decide how long your essay should be and whether it should be handwritten or typed.
In any case, it is recommended that you write a first draft, then have it cor rected by your teacher, and then write a final draft. Your final drafts can be made into a book and copies of the book can be given out to all of the students. You can do a class fundraiser, if you need to raise money to pay for your books. You can also send your essays to the editorial section of your local newspaper to see if they will publish them.
Lesson #4 – Create a puzzle using words
Create an acrostic puzzle or another kind of puzzle using words that have to do with harmony, peace, love, caring, friendship, partnership, sharing, together ness, hope, happiness, unity, tolerance, etc. An acrostic puzzle is a word puzzle, which has many letters in boxes filling the page. You hide the words you want people to find by surrounding the words with other letters that do not form any words. The ‘real’ words, the ones that you want people to find, can be arranged left to right, right to left, up to down, down to up, diagonally down or diagonally up. The game is to have others find the words you have hidden.
It is important to keep a master answer list of all the words you have hid den, so you and your friends will know if they have found all the words. You will also need to photocopy your puzzle so others can do it. When they find one of your hidden words they need to circle it to show where it is. Let’s see whose puzzle has the most words having to do with harmony!! And let’s see who can completely solve the most puzzles in the class! You can make up other word puz zle games, but be sure to write out the instructions so it is clear how to play.
Lesson #5 – An inspiring poem
Write a poem about the thing or things that bring you the most harmony in your life. (Remember that a poem does not have to rhyme – unless you want it to!! A poem is just an expression of your feelings and ideas.) Your poem can be about your favorite pet, about your parents or grandparents, about a place you love to go, about an activity you love to do, or anything else that brings you har mony. Whatever you write about, try to express what it is about that thing that brings you harmony. It will also make your poem more interesting if you try to describe your feelings of harmony.
To do this it is useful to use similes or metaphors. A simile is a compari son between two things, using the words ‘like’ or ‘as.’ For instance, an example of a simile is, “My grandma has a heart of love as big as the ocean,” or, “Playing with my puppy makes me feel warm as a sunny day.” A metaphor is a compari son between two things without using the words ‘like’ or ‘as.’ A metaphor usual ly connects in a creative way two things that are not normally connected together. Metaphors are a little trickier to make. Here is an example of a metaphor: “My crystal collection is a pocketful of joy.” Another example is: “Walking in nature is food for my spirit.”
Lesson #6 – Writing just for yourself
Just write about how you feel. Write in your journal, just for yourself, about your feelings, ideas, dreams, or visions, for 15-30 minutes every day for two weeks. This can be excellent practice for your writing as well as for your personal reflection. Then write about what you learned or discovered about your self after these two weeks of journal writing. Or, discuss what you learned with your class, only if you want to
Discussion Questions:
What do you think Christina Baldwin meant in quotation #3?
b) Herman Hesse said that without writing and books there would be no concept of humanity. Discuss with your class what this might mean. Can you imagine a world without books or writing? What would that kind of world look like?
c)What do you think Samuel Goldwyn meant, when he said, “Television has raised writing to a new low”?
d) Poems and prayers are both expressions of deep and soulful feelings. How are poems and prayers similar? How are they different? Review some examples of prayers from different spiritual traditions and compare them with examples of poems. (There are several collections of prayers from around the world that you can borrow from the library.) Have your class copy their favorite prayers in their best handwriting (or in calligraphy if they know how!) and put them on display near your class poems along with a brief explanation of how poems and prayers are similar and how they are different.
Supplemental Activities:
Write about virtues. In this book you have learned about virtues. Write a poem, a story, or just a passage in your journal about the virtue you like the best or the virtue you think is the most important. Which virtue will you choose? Courage? Tolerance? Compassion? Honesty? Determination? Or some other virtue.
Find a poem you like. If you don’t know any poems, you can look for the poems of Christina Rossetti, William Blake, William Wordsworth, Shel Silver stein, or Mary Oliver to start with. Copy it in your best handwriting and then decorate your page with colored pencils, crayons or markers. Have your favorite poem laminated, framed, or put into a plastic sheet folder to keep it preserved. Put the poem in a special place where you can see it.
Making lists of different kinds of things can be an excellent way to practice your writing and also to help you become more aware of your own feelings, ideas, and dreams: Make a list of words that rhyme with each other. Make a list of the different things you felt on your happiest day. Use words that describe your sensations – how things felt, how they sounded, how they looked, how they smelled – even how they tasted.
Make a list of your favorite books, or your favorite people, or your favorite activities.