In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Grown up
In our depths
There is a repressed scream
Distant
Held back
Leaking through
As stress
As inexplicable grief
As depression
But what that scream really is
Is the child inside
Yearning for escape
Today’s prompt is. All grown up
When was the first time you really felt like a grown up (if ever)?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Perspective
Some say they are liberators
Others say they’re invaders
This conflict dominates the news
But the only view that counts
Is the victims
Today’s prompt is. Perspective
Write about the last disagreement you had with a friend or family member — from their perspective.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Twenty Five
The blackbird perches
High in the silver elm tree
The wind tests the trunk
A quick one – a haiku written without the letter o.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, No Thanks
Visitors from the stars
Passing by
Would be appalled
And leave well alone
Abandon us
As the hopeless savages we are
Today’s prompt is. Twenty-five
There are 26 letters in the English language, and we need every single one of them. Want proof? Choose a letter and write a blog post without using it. (Feeling really brave? Make it a vowel!)
Today’s prompt is. No, thanks
Is there a place in the world you never want to visit? Where, and why not?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Places
The forest
Is always calling
Deep in my heart
The scent of fern and bark
Takes me back
To where I belong
Today’s prompt is. Places
Beach, mountain, forest, or somewhere else entirely?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Back to the Future
I whispered through a wormhole
Sending back words
Of wisdom to myself
Be braver – I said.
Take risks – have more confidence
Avoid this safe, stable life I look back on
It must have worked
Now, I rule the world with terror
Today’s prompt is. Back to the future
A service has been invented through which you can send messages to people in the future. To whom would you send something, and what would you write?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, First light
I awoke
I remembered my dream
My oldest friend
And I
On holiday
On a strange island
We were going glassblowing
He dashed ahead
I lost him
I panicked
I know dreams don’t really mean anything – but this surely means my dreaming mind is more creative than my waking one.
Today’s prompt is. First light
Remember yesterday, when you wrote down the first thought you had this morning? Great. Now write a post about it.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Comedy of Errors
It’s 2022
It’s true
But still
There’s a madman
With his finger on the button
Our zenith has passed
We missed the chance
To progress beyond
Our nature
OK – nothing to do with the prompt really – apart from that’s all that came to mind when I read it.
Today’s prompt is. Comedy of errors
Murphy’s Law says, “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” Write about a time everything did — fiction encouraged here, too!
Bonus assignment: do you keep a notebook next to your bed? Good. Tomorrow morning, jot down the first thought you have upon waking, whether or not it’s coherent.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Happy ever after
Happy ever after? We all know This is consigned to fairy tales Why In this century Are we still driven by greed To war?
Today’s prompt is. Happily ever after
“And they lived happily ever after.” Think about this line for a few minutes. Are you living happily ever after? If not, what will it take for you to get there?
Today’s prompt is. Cliché
Clichés become clichés for a reason. Tell us about the last time a bird in the hand was worth two in the bush for you.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Buffalo Nickel
I found a coin
From 2007
I was newly married
Brown was a new PM
Helicopters and coaches crashed
Here and there
I started a new job
We were still in Europe
We didn’t know the joys
And the horrors to come
In the next 15 years
By the end of the next 15
I should be retired
What will happen between now
And then
What were you doing in 2007?
Today’s prompt is. Buffalo nickel
Dig through your couch cushions, your purse, or the floor of your car and look at the year printed on the first coin you find. What were you doing that year?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, B+
B+
Be true
Be you
But be more
Today’s prompt is. B+
Write about what you did last weekend as though you’re a music critic reviewing a new album.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Seconds
Where is our time
The hours saved in the kitchen
The days saved by the robots
The weeks shaved by the ones and zeros
It was all supposed to save us time
Instead
We have seconds
Left to think
Before consumption
Calls again
Today’s prompt is. Seconds
Describe the most satisfying meal you’ve ever eaten, in glorious detail.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Undo
We all have those memories
That make us cringe
Those times
We wish we could undo
But if we did
We would not have those memories
To make us cringe
And warn us
Not to do it again
So
We would do worse
Today’s prompt is. Undo
If you could un-invent something, what would it be? Discuss why, potential repercussions, or a possible alternative.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Plot of Earth
Selective isolation
That would be my goal
Off the grid
Powered by the sun and wind and tide
Food from the earth
Room for friends to visit
And children to play
Security
Not much to ask
Why is it so distant
For so many
Today’s prompt is. A plot of earth
You’re given a plot of land and have the financial resources to do what you please. What’s the plan?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Nightmares
I dreamt
I was living in poverty
My home was gone
My family replaced
My life controlled
A nightmare
Or a plan
By darker forces
Masquerading as leaders
Today’s prompt is. Nightmares
Describe the last nightmare you remember having. What do you think it meant?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Far From Normal.
Far from normal
Our family is
Like many others
Far from normal
But then
That is normal
The drive for conformity
From the media that surrounds us
Is abnormal
There is no normal
Today’s prompt is. Far from normal
Many of us think of our lives as boringly normal, while others live the high life. Take a step back, and take a look at your life as an outsider might. Now, tell us at least six unique, exciting, or just plain odd things about yourself.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Mentors
The Swan glided by
Remembering
Its days as a cygnet
Mesmerised by its mentors
Now it knew
Their lessons were empty
Now he chose
His mentors more wisely
Today’s prompt is. Mentor
Have you ever had a mentor? What was the greatest lesson you learned from him or her?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, The Clock
I heard the car door slam and immediately looked at the clock. It had stopped
6.20am 18th February, I awoke to the truth. It was cold. The war was ongoing – would never stop.
But I did not care.
Best I can manage today – I am feeling so ill.
Today’s prompt is. The clock
Write about anything you’d like. Somewhere in your post, include the sentence, “I heard the car door slam, and immediately looked at the clock.”
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Proud
I have been proud Recently My colleagues, friends, loved ones Told me Well done I swelled Ah I am easily led To that fall
Today’s prompt is. Proud
When was the last time someone told you they were proud of you?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Cupid’s Arrow
Through glass doors, I saw your eyes They struck me that very first time And as you waited, I felt surprise And bells began to chime I had been resigned until that day To accept a single life Now it seemed I must find a way To make this girl my wife I opened up those doors that day And let you in my life You sashayed by in your silky skirt More than my heart arose I wondered if would just be hurt If this road I chose History did not promise much My track record did not shine But your perfection I longed to touch Could it be that you’d be mine? To the smallest hope, I would clutch And revelled in your shine Your beauty, your smile they stole my heart I longed to hold you near To be your friend was a shaky start Al least I could be near Until that day we made took the leap We became more than friends Then my heart was forever deep With a love that never ends And though age and time forever creep This love still never ends Your ever happy shining heart Lights my life through every waking hour You are a living work of art A beauty like a flower You stir my lust, you stir my love You want to make me grow You are sunshine from above A perfect warming glow You are my hope bringing dove May your light forever flow
Today’s prompt is. Cupid’s arrow
It’s Valentine’s Day, so write an ode to someone or something you love. Bonus points for poetry!
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Shoulda, coulda, woulda
Shoulda done more
Coulda done more
Would have done more
But
There was this
And there was that
We did our best
Under the circumstances
We did
Better than them
Better than we thought
So
We apologise
For the Earth we left you
We enjoyed it while we could
So now you can’t
Today’s prompt is. Shoulda, woulda, coulda
Tell us about something you know you should do . . . but don’t.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, All about you
I can’t contain my dreams So I write I can’t speak with eloquence So I write I cannot fly So I write I cannot stand and fight So I write I cannot remember So I write I cannot still my fears So I write There is so much to dream for So many arguments to win So much to fly from So much to fight against So many memories to cherish So much to fear So I write
Today’s prompt is. All about you
Explain why you chose your blog’s title and what it means to you.
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Whoa
Ballons in a duvet
An attack on the Martian Embassy
Women in bras jogging
In the moonlight
A car overturned
Sneaking through
The grounds on MI5
Wouldn’t you like to know….
Today’s prompt is. Whoa
What’s the most surreal experience you’ve ever had?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Teachable moment
I am not in the mood to write poetry tonight – or fiction. So this is just a ramble.
I have talked about this before in a previous prompt about teacher’s at school who made a difference. I think there is a method of teaching that works best (at least for me – but I think generally) but is rarely used.
At school we are taught that A + B equals C. We are taught that this happened. We are taught the rules to follow and that so and so did this then.
We are taught to remember these facts. Remember them long enough to pass a test. And then, for most of it, we never use that knowledge again and it is forgotten.
Pointless.
What I experienced very rarely was the teacher who taught us why. What this equals that. Why this has that effect. Why this word works better than that. And then you could extrapolate. They would teach you why and then ask you to work out the next step – which you could do now armed with the understanding of why.
In other words, they did not teach you to remember, they taught you to think! To work things out. Once you can do that, you can think for yourself and you never stop learning.
But while on the subject, I am growing more and more convinced that the whole school system is so out of date. This has been reinforced a few years ago now when we were looking for secondary schools for my eldest son.
We saw some horrors. For example, one school that lined up the kids and did uniform inspections, putting pupils that failed into immediate solitary!
When was the last time you had a job that required a uniform? When, in the few cases left where one is required, was the last time you saw someone disciplined for not having one?
This might seem a trivial point, talking about uniforms instead of curriculums etc, but I think it demonstrates the underlying problem.
We have a school system set that was set up in Victorian times. Its purpose was to churn out obedient employees to work as clerks in rigid office environments. And it still does that! It is trying to turn kids into adults fit for a world of work and a society that does now exist anymore.
And it’s worse than just that. They are largely teaching remembering, not thinking. Back in the Victorian days, maybe even up until relatively recently, that was enough. You just had to remember what you had been taught to do your job. And it worked.
But no longer. Now every job is ever-changing. Everyone’s career, in fact, everyone’s life has become lifelong learning! Skills are ever-shifting and you have to adapt.
Except, the kids are coming out of school not equipped to learn but to remember. I know – I was one of them. It took me years to work out, and then only because of the seeds from the one or two good teachers, that I could learn still. That I could think for myself and work things out. That I could do that without being taught by someone. I could find the knowledge myself.
And there is one last thing that really hammered it home to me.
Because of the pandemic, we have of course been doing a lot of homeschooling. This, in my eldest sons case, meant he was given the materials and framework of a lesson told what he was supposed to achieve – but of course did not have a teacher to ask or to watch over him.
If you think about how schools are set up, the very rules they run on, this surely should have failed.
My son coped well. He did not have to be told to work, he did it. But a strange thing happened.
Sometimes, he struggled with a problem or subject. Now at school, he would have to have persevered until the end of the lesson. He could have asked for help but if he had got that help (in large classes that’s not guaranteed), he would not really have remembered it as well, having not worked it out himself.
At home though, he took a different approach. One nobody taught him to do, but that he worked out for himself. One that I often use myself to great success.
He walked away from the problem. Nort for good – he is not Homer Simpson. What he did was switch to another lesson. Being unconfined by a timetable and having to be in a certain class at a certain time he could do this. And then, when he came back to the original lesson and came back to the problem he could handle it and it suddenly seemed simpler and he could solve it.
I have done exactly that many times. It has been proven to work. The theory being that you distract your conscious mind with something else and let the subconscious work it out – which it does much better.
Plus, you get that buzz from working it out yourself that ensures you remember it better than any number of repetitions.
This kind of learning approach is simply denied them at school by the structures in place there.
Surely, it is time for a complete rethink of the whole education system?
Today’s prompt is. Teachable moment
You have to learn a new skill. Do you prefer to read about it, watch someone else do it, hear someone describe it, or try it yourself?
In response to Scott’s Daily Prompt, Childhood revisited
Don’t be so afraid child Fear will stifle you Fear will cage you in Nothing is as bad As you fear So live Smile And savour passion
Scott Andrew Bailey - Author 