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If You Want To Write: Story Opportunities - Article from our Life Coaching Programs
If You Want To Write: Story Opportunities
K WordBird Bate The Writer's Life Coach
In the grocery store a short, quick-moving woman pokes about in a coin purse and then writes out a check for the cashier.
As she waits for her receipt, I mention our week of thunderstorms. She says most people stay indoors, "But I love going out and about in a good rain." Unusual, I think, and it's my preference also. I ask if she knows the name of the oldest historic home in town, as I have been trying to remember. "Oh, I'm not from town," she says cheerfully, "I grew up in East St. Louis."
Most people "from town," would never dream of saying such a thing. Today's East St. Louis is crime and drug-ridden as well as famously dangerous. Its name carries such connotations people lock their doors as they drive by the exits on the highway. I judge this woman to be in her early eighties.
"Did you grow up in THE East St. Louis?" I asked. "With the great jazz music? The grand architecture?" That St. Louis is long since gone.
"Oh heavens, yes," she exclaimed. "It was incredible." She took her receipt from the grocery clerk. "Spectacular city," she said over her shoulder, zipping her cart out the door.
Now, there went a story, rolling along right out of my life. I could run after it like a madwoman, leap in the car, ask her to lunch and soak up the details, possibly becoming deliciously embroiled in the fascinating history of say a bar dancer, a doctor's wife, a failed singer, or the politician that this lady once was. I could find myself, five years from now, an East St. Louis expert, writing an East St. Louis book! Conan O'Brien asks me, "How did you discover your interest in East St. Louis?" and I tell this story about the grocery story line, one thunderstorm morning, where I met this incredible person.
But I did not run after the story. If I was still a photojournalist, or even a young and optimistic, energetic youth, I would have. If the times were more open and friendly, I might. We're guarded, now. All my life I've reached for the groceries of the elderly and handicapped. I walk the bags home, or taken them up stairs. I've stopped to offer rides. These have been sweetly accepted. Now, most often, my offers are politely refused.
The pendulum will swing back again. Meanwhile, I'm hesitant. So...a bit sad...I did not go leap into the woman's car and invite her to lunch, so I could pry into her amazingly incredible history.
Still...that short exchange is fun fodder for many, many story ideas.
Another story opportunity. I'm listening to a national radio station: A Minnesota teenage boy and his mother have been apprehended by the FBI as well as other law officials, and returned to the State to face potential charges. The boy will be reestablished on chemotherapy for his cancer. They had been on the run for one month after declining to continue his chemotherapy treatments.
Huh? WOW. That made me sit up and take notice. A mom and her son are chased and arrested by the FBI because they decided against further chemotherapy? Is refusing chemotherapy a national crime? WHAT a tragic, compelling, bewildering story! I could perhaps write a fiction, science fiction or poem, a creepy play, a letter to the editor, an internet blog, or even medical commentary, about this. You might think of other writing ideas. I could journal privately. Do you think the law can or should force a person to take chemotherapy to save his or her life?
Finally, this photo: It's a real place and time. What does it evokes in you? Pay attention to thought and feeling. Then, what action do you feel to take? Research, poetry, scholarly study, creative fiction, comic strips!?
Places you go, conversation, feelings you feel-anything can generate exciting story idea. The thing is, opportunities quickly slip through your fingers. Take notes, get started, and capture them before they are gone. Sing them into word songs.
Let Yourself Bloom!
© Kimberly Bate
Photo by elander
The wise ancient healers of centuries past understood that there are several root causes of dis - ease. Hippocrates was inspired by the older system of herbal healing in India known as Ayurveda, the science of longevity. Hippocrates told his students " let food be your medicine". he is the founder of today's Allopathic system of healing. The average doctor spends less than seven hours in seven years studying nutrition.before getting his degree. Let food be your medicine ?
What does this tell you about how far away medicine has deviated , and how it has been hijacked by the pharmaceutical companies with their quick fix concepts, and side - effects which are often more damging than the disease itself ?
The ancient healing systems of India and China, as well as other cultures based their diagnosis and treatment upon a holistic, energetic model. Diet and lifestyle were of foremost importance, as well as the doctor empowering the patient to identify the underlying emotional imbalance and lack of spirituality in the causes of disease.
A medicine that does not sufficiently take these facors into account is compelled to use even stronger methods of "treatment" such as drugs, surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Cures for most human ailments can be effected much more gently when the underlying causes of diseases are attended to, and adjustments made, simply through the mild use of herbs and food.
It is getting very scary. A society that is not based on love , must be based on fear. We are living in a covert Pollice State, more and more. Those who point their fingers at the Terrorist need to point that finger back at themselves. In America and Canada, daily, millions of animals are terrorized to death as they are sent through the slaughterhouses. The cow is like our mother , providing us with milk, yet we mercilessly cut her throat for Mc Donald's , etc...We have entered into a state of spiritual amnesia, or, the Meatrix. People have become disempowered. They dont know how to think for themselves. They dont even know what their self is. They identify themselves with their bodies, place of birth, skin color etc....it is all skin disease. We cannot go through an airport without being frisked, searched, suspected. Fear is a quality found in animals. Humans are meant to transcend fear. Fear is based upon attachement to material sense gratification and to our tempporary bodies. We are not the body, but the spirit soul within, therefore when there is some threat to our temporary condition, due to our eternal nature, we dont want that situation to end, not understanding that everything here is temporary , and there is another realm to be eternal in. We need to start acting eternally now, take back our power, be in this world but not of it. No one has the right to tell us that we have to subject ourselves our our familyto harsh invasive poisons such as chemotherapy. People use chemo because for the most part they have remained brain dead, and did not keep their bodies pure and clean. On the other hand, the fetus that is being aborted in the room is not being offered a choice, so how can we call this "pro-choice" ? Does anyone really think that if they were that fetus that they would prefer to be drowned in a saline solution or sucked out by a vacuum than to accept its karma to take birth and live out this life to its full extent ? There are plenty of families waiting to adopt. It is not our right to take the life of another, wehter it is a fetus or an animal. It is not the governement's right to dictate that we must undergo chemo.
Today's inspiration is both provocative and, as my dear friend notes, a bit sad. On one hand, caution is our watchword in this new millennium. In a time when we can not only call on the run, but also text, webcam and "beam up" on GPS, we have nearly lost the ability to connect in person. How precious are those serendipitous conversations that let us listen to another person's bliss. My words sound funny to me, but my WordBird friend knows what I mean. As much of a gift as she received by learning about this woman, WordBird gave her so much more. . .
She listened.
She valued the woman's Voice. Maybe nothing is so validating as truly being heard.
All right. So you are inspired to think and talk about law, rights, medical treatment, ancient healing systems and fear, human connection, high tech and how this affects interconnection and communication, and feeling heard. Good.
Fantastic, in fact. That's all stuff we could talk about for a month. Important, essential stuff.
I donno about cows and such...there's a debate there that's been going on for a very long time.I've been vegetarian and I believe I understand the argument you make.
However, I believe we need to stay away from radicalized language if we want others to understand our position at all.
If we use language that is "loaded" we drive other people away--they stop listening.
So you can make a choice about how you speak about things. That applies to a simple argument at home.We all know the buttons to press that cause our partner or friends to see red. Once we press that button, "You ALWAYS go bowling but you NEVER ask me to go!" then we know the talk will escalate into a fight. We KNOW it. If I say "always" and "bowling" in the same sentence, there goes the fight.
So we can decide what words to use, and which not to use. Depending if we want to pick a fight, or not. If you want someone to stop listening to you, use the Red Button words. Ya know?
That's about language, and writing, too.
First time commenter! You are right (in the personal note you sent to me), I haven't been reading and/or didn't associate the author of these articles with you!
But - first - rule #1 - I definitely don't hate it. (high praise I realize, but you asked!)
Second - if she is really from East St. Louis, she would be used to people running up to her car, pounding on the window...and may have had a good defense mechanism in her car to prevent such things. So...the East St. Louis story could be a prelude to the Conan interview - or it could be a phrase after "Dearly beloved we are gathered here..."
Third - I have such mixed feelings about the chemo thing (which, I suppose is the point). A few years back a very funny and inspiring mininster friend of mine said that he had gone to a doctor. The doc told him to take the medicine. Minister guy said, "I believe in God and God will heal me." The doc said, "I believe in God too...and he told me to give you this medicine."
My day job is with medical folk and although these folks are excellent at what they do -- they are often blindsided by a tricky case. And cancer in particular is a really messed up disease - that can have cures worse than the symptoms -- and can seemily pronounce death sentences to people who outlive the physicians who proclaimed them.
So...going back to the first rule. Don't hate it. Found it inspirational...and yup...can't keep from commenting.
...and from paying more attention to the other articles.
Paul
As they say in the south, because they are brave, and strong souls who adore good company, "Ya'll come back now, ya hear." What the heck. Go crazy some day and comment all over the place.