Fate

Fate--a life planned without an individuals consent. (I would hate to be so lame as to use the dictionary definition again.)

Romeo says to his friends, "He that has the steerage of my course, direct my sails. On lusty gentlemen." (Rough citation) This begs the question, "How much choice do we have in the way our lives turn out?" Do we direct our sails or is it the wind that pushes our vessel out to sea or to the nearest shore and we are simply the riders waiting out the ride?

I have always believed that everything happens for a reason. President Obama became President to silence the others, you got the luck of the draw of having Mrs. P as your teacher, bell bottoms went out of style and oh so many other events. What does fate have to say? Does fate exist? Are we pawns? Or, is fate a scapegoat for our fear of taking responsibility?

Write out your thoughts on fate.

Picture Prompts to Ponder

Look at the photos and respond!









How often do we look at the world and never take time to learn the story behind what we see? We make quick judgements that are often unfounded. We have been practicing supporting our thinking with research and literature. Now practice supporting your thinking using the items in the picture.


Create a brief 75 word story, using the images found within this site. You have three to choose from. Feel free to use your vocabulary words.

Tips for analysis: Make a list of everything you see. Create a motivation behind why each item is in the picture. Determine how the items fit into the storyline you are creating. Start writing.

It should make sense and not be too outrageous. The story should be supported by the items in the photo. Have fun:)

Love?

Love makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place. ~Zora Neale Hurston

Oh, the yucky LOVE stuff is upon us. Roses are red, violets are blue the world sees love in Valentines Day. How about you?

I have and probably will always be a sappy, hopeless romantic for the rest of my life. Everywhere we look, newspaper ads, magazine articles, billboards, song lyrics, plays, stories, and yes, poetry, tell us how to define love.
According to dictionary.com, love has many possible definitions. Here is the first of soooo many:
love 
–noun
1. a profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person.

The strong words in the definition are interesting. Such profound language speaks to the weight of such a feeling/emotion. "Profound and passionate," both denote a sense of strength and purpose not to be questioned. Yet, most people question LOVE. It is a word that is over used, yes, I know. But, how does one establish it exists? Shakespeare uses Romeo and Juliet to address this idea of true love through his beautiful iambs and couplets. We see it in Pyramus and Thisbe from Ovid, Taylor Swift sings about it in her song, "Romeo and Juliet," Moulin Rouge revisits the idea through a medley of songs that stretch across rock and roll history and the list could continue.

How do you see LOVE speaking to the romantic expectations of those who pursue it? Does romantic love exist? How does it differ from all of the ways portrayed in the books, plays, poetry we read? You have read Wuthering Heights, Great Expectations, Kettle Bottom, and soon will embark on a journey through Romeo and Juliet. Is there hope in the real world for LOVE or is it fit only for the books? DO these expectations that have raised the bar so very high make it all worth it? Does it exist? Is there more than one kind?

(How can we not blog about Valentines Day the week of?)

Listening:

I do not know whether it has to do with me being a teacher or if it is just human to want others to listen. When others speak to me, I try to turn and face them, so I can hear everything they are saying. I watch body language, listen to voice inflection, listen to and make meaning based on the words (vocabulary) used and I try to really hear what is being said or asked.

It is my belief that most people do not listen. Most people do not allow their own bias, life, needs be set aside so others can be heard. I know that I have been guilty of this. That is why I face the person and allow myself the opportunity to face them. My eyes allow me to focus.

Do people not listen because their own narcissistic needs absorb them entirely too much forcing others' needs to become secondary and irrelevant? Is it because we do not practice living in the moment but live only in our plans? Perhaps, it has to do with constant distractions thus driving us into small idle chatter where speaking and listening become space fillers, not meaning makers.

I am not sure. Think about a time when you truly engaged in a conversation with another person. How did it feel to be heard? How did the connection feel? How does this differ from when others, including ourselves, disengage and no longer hear, but nod their heads in a fake conversation?