Tags
blogging101, Creative Writing, Journaling, Memories & Reflections, Sandbox Writing Challenge, Self-actualization, The Playful Way to Knowing Yourself, Writing 101, Writing Prompts
So here are my four lists, the loosening-up exercises before starting into Roberta Allen’s book The Playful Way to Knowing Yourself. There are a few extras in there, but I just couldn’t leave them out! And they’re not in any specific order. It will be interesting to see what she has us do with them. And by the way, this book is an over-sized workbook, so if you think you might seriously want to do this and keep all your writing in one place, please consider buying it. It’s not expensive. Have a look here.
If you were asked to choose seven words to describe yourself, what would they be?
1. gregarious
2. introspective
3. anxious
4. gabby
5. kind
6. spiritual
7. curious
8. naive
If you were asked to choose seven objects that have meaning for you, what objects would you choose?
1. dragonflies
2. leaves
3. shells
4. candles
5. sparrows
6. card Lord Drollery made for me
7. piece of beryl stone from my friend Kim
8. poem my friend Plato wrote for me
9. my journals
If you were asked to choose seven colors that have meaning for you, what colors would you choose?
1. green
2. purple
3. blue
4. black
5. white (yes, I know white is the absence of ALL colors and I don’t care!)
6. red
7. gray
If you were asked to choose seven places that have meaning for you, what places would you choose?
1. a forest
2. the ocean
3. Our Lady of the Mountains Retreat House
4. Gettysburg
5. Quebec City
6. our home
7. a bookstore
8. Starbucks
9. Ireland
HAVE YOU DONE YOUR LIST YET???
_______________________________________________________
Back when we first started this challenge, I hadn’t figured out to post responses up here. But since Lori is bravely going back to do the earlier ones, I will add them now as she does them.
Lori’s post (As the Fates Would Have It) — Loosening Up Exercises #1
Impromptu Promptlings 
Pingback: The Sandbox Writing Challenge – Loosening Up Exercises #1 | As the Fates Would Have It
Pingback: The Sandbox Writing Challenge — Review #1 | Impromptu Promptlings
Is it ok if you’re nearly a month late to hop in and join this challenge from the start? I could try catch up, but not sure how likely that will be. Love the elven name btw!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Safar! Welcome. Please feel free to just start with this week’s challenge if you’d like to join. Challenge 5. It’s been the hardest one. The others were just kind of warm up exercises. You can catch up later if the mood ever hits you. I really didn’t know what to do with this one! I may reorder some of the exercises. But they’re kind of interesting. It’s good to meet you, btw, and thanks for the follow. I’ll be by your blog.
LikeLike
I’ll go take a look at this week’s, sounds like a challenge!
LikeLike
Oh, and the Elven name is part Quenya, part Sindarin. It literally means Maiden of the Green Stone. My birthstone is emerald. Thanks!
LikeLike
Beautiful! I believe Tolkien thought that his languages should evolve as the different races of elves interacted. A name that is part Sindarin and Quenya would make sense with that logic. Any meaning in the choice of elven languages from which to construct the name?
LikeLike
How weird, I realise I couldn’t play by the rules either. I did this quickly in my head before there were any other answers, meaning to come back to it later.
I don’t associate myself with any colours. I like all colours and only dislike certain shades of colours.
I was very specific about objects and places (equating places to cities or countries I have enjoyed). I couldn’t think of many objects I treasure, other than my hot water bottle (it’s hard to get the right type), my little house and my iMac – my sweetheart helpfully suggested my hair slide when I was telling him about it). There are lots of things I like in general, but that way of interpreting the question completely eluded me.
I can think of lots of places that having meaning for me – too many to list, though my home town would always come first. And when it comes to words, they’d be different every day you asked me!
LikeLiked by 1 person
And when it comes to words, they’d be different every day you asked me! I had to think about that for a minute after I read it, but you’re right. It would surely depend on my mood. I’ve read words on other folks’ lists and thought, “Oh why didn’t I pick that one!” Good observation!
Question for you… Have you ever seen the movie Eddie and the Cruisers? Tom Berenger (who plays the pianist) uses a word to describe a pregnant pause when he was reading something. For a long time I’ve been trying to remember what that word was. Your blog name rings a bell for some reason. You wouldn’t have any clue what that word might be would ya? Your name on here means something like a whispering stream sound, right? Or am I out in left field?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m sorry, I haven’t seen the movie. You’re right, susurrus means a whisper. I once wrote a post about it.
I used to have objects I treasured as symbols of something – such as a tiny stone heart I loved dearly which my Mama and Papa had given me on a thin silver chain. I lost that on the moors when I was about 17. We were dressing up in costumes and I quickly pulled my jumper off, snapping the chain in the process. My first impulse was to preserve my modesty, thinking I could easily find the chain when I was dressed but it was lost forever in the heather, wildflowers and wimberry bushes, despite a lot of searching.
As a student, I kept a shell in my coat pocket, treasured as a symbol of a day (and a boy dear to me). It broke (it was a shell!) and I attached a meaning to that. And my beloved 18th birthday watch turned out not to be waterproof and completely gave up the ghost in a downpour in Stratford Upon Avon. So I learned quite young not to invest meanings in things. For some time after I wore a plastic watch I got as a freebie, these days I wear no jewellery at all. People and memories matter to me: objects are collectively a great and much-appreciated comfort but they’re not indispensable.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have a whole tin box full of little things that have special meaning for me. In some way I suppose I look at them as milestones in my life. I get them out now and then just to remember and look back at how far I’ve come. Did you associate susurrus with the sound of the shell? I love listening to shells.
LikeLike
I associate it with a sighing sound I heard a rose make as it shattered in the heat. I wrote a post about it soon after I started blogging. It was also to give me a sense of perspective about blogging – I was pretty self-conscious at first.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I would never have guessed you were self-conscious. Your posts are always so beautifully crafted! Very professional.
LikeLike
Sorry this is a bit late, I’ve been a bit chaotic this week, but I wanted to do it.
Seven words:
Shy
Funny
Ethical
Compassionate
Anxious
Creative
Open
Seven Objects:
A pair of jeans I bought in1972, and embroidered
My dolls, Carrie and Christopher
A photo of my dog, circa 1964
My collection of old ink bottles
One of my sewing machines, a vintage Pfaff
My secateurs
A pincushion my daughter made for me.
(I decided to stick with particular objects, otherwise the list would have read “Trees, Cats, Bees, Books, Flowers, Morris Minors, Essential Oils,)
Seven colours:
Blue
Every shade of green in nature
Jade
Turquoise
Yellow
Cream
Gold (but not the metal)
Seven places
Stowford, the little Hamlet
Home
Woodland/Forest
Fields and meadows
Our Oxfam shop
Amsterdam
RHS Rosemore – a local public garden
xxx
LikeLiked by 1 person
A collection of old ink bottles! Must be a story behind that. How many do you have? Can’t wait to hear about them. Not sure what she’s going to do with all this stuff.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I only have about ten or so. I dug them out of the stream – bed at the bottom of what used to be my garden, about 15 years ago. About 100 years ago locals used to dump their rubbish a nearby, and I found loads of stuff which had washed down the stream over the years.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh Jane! Just think of the story you could write about whoever it was that used all that ink and disposed of all the bottles when they were empty! That would be fascinating!
LikeLiked by 1 person
And what they wrote with it! I think my character would be a member of the aristocrasy with a secret. There’s a stately home just down the road from where I lived. It belongs to the Fortescue family. When I was young, Lady Margaret Fortescue lived there and ran the surrounding estate. Now her daughter, Lady Arran has taken charge. You may like to check this out: http://www.castlehilldevon.co.uk/history
I used to live a few minutes walk from there!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ll have to check that out. Looks like you might have some fodder for a story there! Write one!
LikeLike
Pingback: An Exercise in Knowing Myself | The Frothy Filosofer
I will be right over to have a read! Thanks for playing!
LikeLike
What a wonderful idea – thanks for the tip about the book.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I sure did love her Playful Way to Serious Writing. I hope this one will be as stimulating. Thanks for stopping by! It’s nice to meet you.
LikeLiked by 1 person
If you were asked to choose seven words to describe yourself, what would they be?
1. spiritual
2. solitary
3. believer
4. dreamer
5. survivor
6. optimistic
7. feisty
If you were asked to choose seven objects that have meaning for you, what objects would you choose?
1. my grandfathers bible
2. dragonflies
3. seashells
4. my journal
5. my camera
6. poems/notes from my Jim
7. certain pictures
If you were asked to choose seven colors that have meaning for you, what colors would you choose?
1. green
2. yellow
3. orange
4. brown
5. purple
6. blue
7. black
If you were asked to choose seven places that have meaning for you, what places would you choose?
1. the beach
2. my yoga mat/my space
3. the woods
4. on a boat
5. Nubble Lighthouse
6.Harvey Cedars LBI
7. the mountains
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh my Lord! I forgot my journals! Thanks for reminding me. Must add them! (I should warn everyone I do color outside the lines. Plato taught me that! 😀 )
LikeLiked by 2 people
HaHa…..I reserve the right to change, at a moments notice anything on my list!!!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes! We are in complete agreement then. We have a few things in common on there. Your grandfather’s Bible reminded me of something, too. I have the brass covered New Testament my dad carried in his breast pocket all through the war. If it’s pages could only talk… It saw a lot of life…and death.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know what I forgot to put on the list……8 months before he passed away, he gave me his wedding band….I keep that in a safe place,,,his bible came to me when he died….I keep that on my night stand next to my bed….first thing in the morning I lay my hand on it and say good morning and last thing at night I say good night…….
LikeLiked by 1 person
Have you ever written about that? It’s beautiful. ❤
LikeLike
Interesting and challenging exercise, a bit like an extension of “Desert Island Discs”! I think I would find it hard to come up with lists, I would want to change it all the time. I particularly like how you describe yourself and the special objects – there is something very touching about the beryl stone from your friend Kim.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t generally like lists either. As you can see, I couldn’t play by the rules when I did them! 😀 The beryl stone is very special and has a lot to do with my elvish name Calensariel, which means maiden of the green stone. Long story. Thank you for stopping by. Great to have you!
LikeLiked by 2 people