Slice of Life Day 3: Love Is...

-
For the month of March, I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life blogging challenge. This is my first year participating. I am so appreciative of this community and how awesome it is. 

On Monday afternoons, there are several of us that meet in a colleague's room for writing group. We write to a different prompt or idea each week, or we can work on something else we have been writing on our own. It has been a great help to me to stay on track with writing when I can't find the motivation to keep going on my own. This piece originated in writing group. We watched the video Matt de la Pena made for World Read-Aloud Day, of his picture book Love. Then we wrote in response to the video. This is what I wrote:

Love starts in the morning. A rumpled blue and white bedsheet. A sleepy, warm arm that reaches across the space between us and pulls me back in an embrace.

Love is the warm spot between our doors where Bucky sleeps, waiting for his family to emerge, and the floppy, soft top of his head butted against my leg as we walk to the kitchen down the dark hall.

Love is an alarm sounding the day's beginning, followed a few minutes later by a soft, "Morning, mom," as I sip my coffee... sometimes a hug if I'm lucky.

Love is the clatter of breakfast dishes, the smell of sausage frying, a seat at the table in the yellow glow of the dining room lights before the day starts.

Love is the time to say goodbye--in wishes for good days, hugs, and the empty table that will be full again this evening. Love is in the clock hands as the hours signal it's time to join the real world.

Comments

  1. Deb DayMarch 3, 2018 at 3:01 PM

    !st off, I'm jealous you have a writing group in your school. I've had to branch out online to find mine. And secondly, this is beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cristi JulsrudMarch 3, 2018 at 4:18 PM

      Thank you! It is awesome to have at least a few like-minded people to hang with in real life! You might try reaching out to your colleagues; some of the ones that ended up in writing group are not at all the ones I would have expected!

      Delete
  2. Pat HollowayMarch 3, 2018 at 4:08 PM

    This reminds me of a cartoon appearing in the newspaper many years ago. Always started with the phrase, "Love is ..." then a drawing of a girl or boy and a cute saying about something that shows you really love your mate. Very nice.

    ReplyDelete
  3. RebeccaMarch 3, 2018 at 4:20 PM

    This makes me feel happy and warm inside, thank you. I truly mean it. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Karen SzymusiakMarch 3, 2018 at 5:22 PM

    I LOVE the book! What a treasure it is! I liked the way you used the book as a mentor text to write about your own meaning of love. Wow! You really captured some wonderful thoughts. Your own brand of 'Love". Very nicely done.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jennifer LaffinMarch 3, 2018 at 6:45 PM

    Love is...this post. Such a beautiful tribute to your family. That’s what it’s all about! ❤️

    ReplyDelete
  6. Leigh Anne EckMarch 4, 2018 at 7:25 AM

    Love this post and this slice idea! I have not read this book yet, and I know I am missing out a deep experience. And I am so jealous of your writing group. I cannot even imagine having that support in real life! You are one lucky writer.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Elisabeth EllingtonMarch 4, 2018 at 8:36 AM

    I love this slice idea too! Definitely borrowing for later in the month. I'm going to have to show my students that video too and maybe get them to do some writing! Thank you.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Slice of Life 1: When the World Hates You

-
Image
For the month of March, I'll be writing with the  Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life Challenge . This is my first year participating in SoL! I am excited and optimistic about it! So here goes nothing... My son is a sixth grader at the middle school I work at this year. It's a whole new adventure having a child in middle school, and at the same school as me! Some days we both ride home in total silence, but this past Monday, he wanted to talk to me about his dodgeball experience in PE. This is his first semester having PE, and he seems to have mixed feelings about it. (I did too in middle school.) Our conversation started with, "Mom, I think the world hates me." "Well that's an awful thing to say. Why would you think that?" "Today in PE we were playing dodgeball. I threw and threw and threw and I never could hit that stupid cone! And then, FINALLY, I hit it. I wasn't even aiming for it; I was throwing it at a kid. But when I hit it, i
Read more

Slice of Life Day 7: Sticks and Stones...

-
Image
This is Day 7 of the 31 day Slice of Life Challenge sponsored by Two Writing Teachers. I am participating in this community for the first time this year. So far, I am loving the daily habit of writing, and the feedback from other writers! Blood leaked from her nose and licked at her lips. Her eyes had blackened. Cuts had opened up and a series of wounds were rising to the skin. All from words. All from Liesel's words. The Book Thief , by Markus Zusak It's been a long time since I got beat up by words. The last time I remember it happening was in 7th grade. I was sitting outside at car riders', just minding my own business, when this awful 8th grader decided that I was somehow offensive to her and began to belittle my appearance. I can still close my eyes and call up every detail of the scene, every word that was said, every laughing face around me, every ounce of the hurt that it caused. That's not to say no one has said anything horrible to me since
Read more