Three times a month, I'll post a writing prompt. Open a notebook and write for 10 minutes. Don't worry about grammar or punctuation - just write. Then let the writing simmer and your mind wander for awhile.
And who knows? Maybe you'll discover a character for your next short story or a theme for a narrative essay. Or maybe you'll use the idea to create a special holiday card or photo album for someone in your family. However you decide to use your journal entry, I know you'll enjoy re-reading it months--and years--down the road.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My teenagers and I reached into a bowl to draw our seat assignments for the Hunger Banquet.
My ticket sent me to the high-income group which represented the 15 percent of the world's population with a per capita income of $12,000 or more. We could afford a nutritious daily diet, had access to medical care, and lived in a comfortable home with at least one car and two televisions.
The tickets my two sons chose sent them to the middle-income group. They were part of the 35 percent of the world's population that earn between $987 and $11,999 a year.
"It's unlikely you own land," the organizer said. "You probably work as a day laborer and a serious illness would throw you into poverty. You make just enough money to send your children to school for a few years -- if they're boys. Or, you might have left your family to work in the city. You send money home and hope it helps make a better life for your family."
My daughter sat with the low-income group, which represented the majority of the world's population who earn an average of about $2.70 a day.
"For you, every day is a struggle," she was told. "Finding food, water, and shelter may consume the entire day. School and health care are out of the question. Early death is normal; many mothers lose one or two of their children before they turn five."
I was served lasagna, salad, French bread, lemonade, and chocolate cake. My sons picked up plates of rice and beans from a nearby table. My daughter scooped rice and water from bowls set in the middle of the floor.
During the discussion, organizers asked those at my table how we felt about our meal and especially about the second basket of bread we were served midway through.
"Guilty," was the general consensus. "We had too much, but we didn't know what to do. We wanted to share it, but there wasn't enough for everyone."
So the organizer turned to those in the middle- and low-income groups: "What should they have done? Who should they have given the extra too? And what might have happened?"
"We'd probably have fought over it," said one.
"Maybe we would have given it to the oldest," another countered. "Or the youngest. Or the sickest."
And then, from one of the students in the low-income group: "But couldn't they teach us how to make bread or how to grow wheat? Wouldn't that help everyone?"
This was exactly the point the organizer had hoped the teenagers would grasp, so she pushed a little more. She shared statistics about hunger in developing nations and in the United States and then connected hunger to low-birth-weight babies, malnutrition, disease, and death.
My kids' stomachs growled all the way home, but they had a full plate of issues to think about.
Journal Entry: Write about a learning experience that made an impact. How did the presenter make the lesson "real" to you/your child?
Visit Oxfam America Hunger Banquet to learn how to organize a Hunger Banquet in your community.
Congrats to these LM staff members!
Maria Scala, Column Editor: "I'm proud to announce that two of my poems, Immigrant and What Makes You, were published in the latest issue of the literary journal Descant. The issue showcases a broad range of writing and photography from those of Sicilian heritage."
Karna Converse, Blog Editor: "I was the Friday Speak Out! guest post at The Muffin (WOW! Women On Writing's blog). "Defrosting the Deep Freeze" compares the contents of my deep freeze with those of my writing files and highlights how I'm now developing 12 years of random thoughts into short pieces for Literary Mama readers. "
Do you keep a journal - or wish you could get one started? Literary Mama wants to help.
Three times a month, I'll post a writing prompt. Open a notebook and write for 10 minutes. Don't worry about grammar or punctuation - just write. Then let the writing simmer and your mind wander for awhile.
And who knows? Maybe you'll discover a character for your next short story or a theme for a narrative essay. Or maybe you'll use the idea to create a special holiday card or photo album for someone in your family. However you decide to use your journal entry, I know you'll enjoy re-reading it months--and years--down the road
.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Consider these comments about how to talk with children about news events.
"Age-appropriate conversations about news-related issues keep children interested in and informed about the world. The topics can (and should) vary. It's important to discuss fun news events -- like who won the World Series -- as well as the more serious topics. One of my favorite teachers used to ask her kindergarten class every week if anyone had heard any issues on the news they wanted to talk about. But she wouldn't just focus on the horrible things; she would talk about the weather, sports events, and movies too."
~~ Diane Levin, Professor of Education at Wheelock College, pbsparents.org
"No matter what the subject or issue, we have always tried to follow the same principles: ignorance is not bliss; ignorance is dangerous. And wherever you see bad stuff happening, you see good people trying to make it better."
~~ Linda Ellerbee, Nick News, referring to the September 2011 broadcast which reported on "9/11 For Kids Too Young to Remember"
"Our mission is to inform, educate and inspire by making news relevant and engaging for young people and sparking discussion around the important issues impacting youth today."
~~ Channel One News, Who Are We?
Journal Entry: Write about a conversation you had with your child about the day's news. Incorporate as much of the actual dialogue as possible.
The Motherhood Initiative, formerly The Association for Research on Mothering, and Demeter Press--the first and still only feminist association, journal and press focused on motherhood--is engaged in a 2012 membership drive.
From founder and director, Andrea O'Reilly: "We have just learned that we have been approved for publishing grants from the Canadian Government for long-term funding for Demeter Press. These grants will provide funding so that we may continue to publish high quality scholarship on motherhood. But to qualify we have to get our four fall Demeter Press titles printed by December 2011 at a cost of $30,000. So we are asking members and supporters of our organization and motherhood scholarship to join/renew now for 2012, purchase Demeter Press titles, or make a donation."
MIRCI members receive 40% off all Demeter Press titles and a free motherhood publication. (In 2011, that publication is the 200+ page "Teaching Motherhood" booklet ($20 value); the 2012 publication TBA.) Membership also permits presentations at conferences and publish opportunities in the journal.
Find the most recent Demeter Press catalog here.
Find the 2012 membership form here.
Do you keep a journal - or wish you could get one started? Literary Mama wants to help.
Three times a month, I'll post a writing prompt. Open a notebook and write for 10 minutes. Don't worry about grammar or punctuation - just write. Then let the writing simmer and your mind wander for awhile.
And who knows? Maybe you'll discover a character for your next short story or a theme for a narrative essay. Or maybe you'll use the idea to create a special holiday card or photo album for someone in your family. However you decide to use your journal entry, I know you'll enjoy re-reading it months--and years--down the road.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ken and I decided to keep each of our three pregnancies secret for the first trimester because we knew that was the time period a pregnancy runs the highest risk of miscarriage. During each of those 90-day periods, I dreamed about the changes the addition would bring to our home, what he/she would look like, and whom he/she would remind me of.
But at the end of those three months, I told everyone. My parents told everyone they knew, and Ken's parents told everyone they knew.
It's hard to keep good news secret.
Journal Entry: Write about the first trimester of pregnancy. At what point did you share your news with friends and family? What issues did you take into consideration before spreading the word?
Fifth Annual Poets Forum
On the campuses of New York University and The New School
New York City
October 20-22, 2011
Daily Passes: $10 - $60
All Event Pass: $120
Sponsored by the Academy of American Poets
The Poets Forum brings together more than 30 acclaimed poets every year for an exploration of the ever-evolving landscape of contemporary poetry in America and features in-depth discussions with an array of distinguished poets, readings, lectures, celebrations, and a selection of poet-led literary walking tours throughout Manhattan.
Some of this year's participants include former U.S. Poets Laureate Rita Dove and Kay Ryan (the most recent Pulitzer Prize winner for poetry), Matthew Dickman, Yusef Komunyakaa, Joan Larkin, Cate Marvin, Sharon Olds, Carl Phillips, and Anne Waldman
Find a detailed schedule of events here.
Has your night out been ruined by loud, unruly children?
Has your child's behavior been an issue in a public place?
In July, a restaurant owner in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania instituted a ban on children under age 6, announcing he was doing so "on behalf of the kind, refined people who have emailed me who have had meals ruined." (The restaurant bills itself as a 19th Hole for golfers where the atmosphere is upscale, quiet, and casual.)
He received 2,000 emails and the story generated 10,000 online votes in a poll taken by a Pittsburgh TV station. The emails ran 11 to 1 in favor of the decision; 64 percent of the online voters were supportive.
Bloggers kept the "No Kids Allowed" discussion going for more than a week encouraging readers to share their experiences in restaurants, in airplanes, in theatres, and in grocery stores.
What do YOU think?
Then, check out these essays from the LM archives for more thoughts on the subject.
Dalai Mama by Shari MacDonald Strong: "Half an hour from Portland our descent began, and small children began to cry as the pressure built up in their little ears. One child, in particular, seemed to be in great pain."
The Mother Load by Terri Minsky: "Work was a distraction from Sam and Annie; Sam and Annie were a distraction from work. It turns out I'm not all that good at compartmentalizing or managing my time, but until this point, I never really had to be. I had always gotten things done before I had kids because I could work as long as I needed to . . . As my available work time ticked away, I would become increasingly tense. Mommy wasn't opening the doors for a hug; it was the Writer, and she was snapping, "You have to leave me alone! I have to get this done!" This was followed by Guilty Mommy, who wouldn't let Frustrated Writer do anything until she apologized. "